The highest court in the United States has protected the right of women to access an abortion pill - for the time being. 

The US Supreme Court blocked new restrictions set by lower courts on a widely used abortion pill on Friday.

The judges granted emergency requests by the Justice Department and the pill's manufacturer to put on hold a preliminary ruling by the the District Judge of Texas - which would have greatly limited the availability of the pill.

Conservative Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito publicly dissented from the decision. Alito wrote that the administration and the pill manufacturer did not show that they were likely to suffer "irreparable harm."

The case will now return to the New Orleans Court of Appeals, where the losing side could return an appeal to the Supreme Court.

Mifepristone is taken with another drug called misoprostol to perform medication abortion - which accounts for more than half of all US abortions.

The drug has been approved for use in the US since 2000 and more than five million people have used it.

Roe v Wade

US President Joe Biden welcomed the ruling and said mifepristone remains "available and approved for safe and effective use while we continue this fight in the courts".

"The stakes could not be higher for women across America. I will continue to fight politically driven attacks on women's health," he said.

"But let’s be clear — the American people must continue to use their vote as their voice, and elect a Congress who will pass a law restoring the protections of Roe v Wade."

The landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that had legalised abortions across the US was overturned in 2022. This allowed each individual US to rule on access to abortion.

Some 18 out of 50 US states now ban abortion completely or ban it for those who are 6, 15, 18 or 20 weeks pregnant, depending on the state.