Abortion Pill Politics

The Host

A decision Friday night by a federal appeals court not only has raised new questions about the continued availability of the abortion pill mifepristone but has also thrust the abortion issue back into the spotlight. That’s something the Trump administration had hoped to avoid during the midterm elections.

Meanwhile, this week Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary, the agency’s scientists, and President Donald Trump tussled over whether to approve fruit-flavored vapes, which might help adults quit smoking but also might attract youths to vaping.

This week’s panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Health News, Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Sandhya Raman of Bloomberg Law.

Panelists

Among the takeaways from this week’s episode:

• It is unclear whether the abortion pill mifepristone will continue to be available through telehealth prescribing — currently the way more than a quarter of all abortions in the U.S. are obtained. The Supreme Court this week temporarily restored access after a lower court blocked it, but it remains to be seen what the high court will do next. The justices could decide to hear the case, potentially reviving abortion as a campaign issue in the midterm elections. Regardless, the case has the power to undermine not only abortion access, even in states where it is legal, but also the pharmaceutical industry’s ability to develop new drugs.
• Makary’s job as FDA commissioner is reportedly in limbo, now over flavored vape products, after Trump reportedly pressured Makary to clear them through agency approval. Trump talked on the campaign trail about preserving the vapes — considered by some a useful smoking cessation tool — yet that perspective runs afoul of public health concerns about the risk to children of keeping fruit-flavored tobacco products on the market.
• Also, the White House pulled Casey Means’ nomination to become U.S. surgeon general, replacing her with Nicole Saphier, a radiologist and commentator who has criticized Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s policies. Saphier is Trump’s third nominee for the post.
• And the United States, having pulled out of the World Health Organization under Trump’s leadership, finds itself sidelined as the global body responds to a cruise ship with a deadly hantavirus outbreak, with potentially serious ramifications for public health.

Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF Health News’ Andrew Jones, who wrote the latest “Bill of the Month” feature, about an emergency room bill for a visit that wasn’t an emergency — but could have been.

Plus, for “extra credit” the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week that they think you should read, too: 

Julie Rovner: KFF Health News’ “HHS’ Healthy Food Agenda Puts Hospitals on Notice About Patients’ Meals,” by Stephanie Armour.

Shefali Luthra: ProPublica’s “Babies Are Bleeding to Death as Parents Reject a Vitamin Shot Given at Birth,” by Duaa Eldeib.

Sandhya Raman: The Cut’s “Pediatricians Didn’t Sign Up for This,” by Juno DeMelo.

Jessie Hellmann: Nature’s “Key US Science Panels Are Being Axed — And Others Are Becoming Less Open,” by Max Kozlov, Alexandra Witze, and Dan Garisto.

Also mentioned in this week’s podcast:

• The Wall Street Journal’s “The Antiabortion Movement Is Turning on Trump,” by Philip Wegmann, Liz Essley Whyte, and Jennifer Calfas.
• The New York Times’ “F.D.A. Blocked Publication of Research Finding Covid and Shingles Vaccines Were Safe,” by Christina Jewett.
• The New York Times’ “Since Congress Let Obamacare Subsidies Expire, Millions Are Dropping Coverage,” by Reed Abelson and Margot Sanger-Katz.
• CNN’s “Exclusive: Deleted Tweets Reveal New Surgeon General Pick Criticized Trump and RFK Jr. Health Policies,” by Andrew Kaczynski and Meg Tirrell.

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