The states consider it a move to force the F.D.A. to review and acknowledge extensive research showing the pill’s safety.

The petition urges the agency to do away with an “unnecessary” and “burdensome” regulatory framework that significantly limits access to this medication.

The attorneys general of New York, California, Massachusetts and New Jersey asked the Food and Drug Administration to expand access to the abortion pill mifepristone, and remove outdated restrictions still in place 25 years after its approval.