Mifepristone
The big story this week was, of course, was the oral arguments in the Supreme Court in Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, which challenges the FDA’s approval in 2000 of the abortion drug mifepristone, as well as changes made in 2016 and 2021, easing access to the drug, allowing healthcare providers other than doctors to prescribe it, allowing it to be prescribed remotely by telemedicine rather than in person, allowing dispensing it by mail, and allowing its use up to 10 weeks into a pregnancy.
The case was brought by a group of anti-abortion medical organizations, representing seven doctors (though one is a dentist and another is not a doctor) who argue that they are harmed by these FDA rulings because they might have to treat women suffering serious side effects from medication abortions (which are very rare) against their religious or moral objections. Two of the plaintiffs work in emergency rooms where such cases might be treated, though neither has ever been called on in such a case and they already can claim a religious or moral exception to be excused. Most of the Justices’ questions concerned their standing to bring the case.
The analysis I have read or watched all say that it seems that the majority of Justices seemed to indicate a ruling against the plaintiffs, keeping mifeprestone (used in more than half of all abortions in this country) available as it is today.
It’s worth noting that the three lawyers who argued the case were women.
The sources I used for the above are mostly these two articles from SCOTUS Blog as well as the videos below:
Setting and atmosphere, as well as analysis
www.scotusblog.com/…
Argument Analysis
www.scotusblog.com/...
Joy Reid looked at the history of anti-abortion. protests at abortion clinics which terrorized those who worked in them and those who came for treatment. One of the advantages of medication abortion is that it allows women to stay at home so they don’t have to face the mobs crowding clinics. I found this context-setting important, and share it here.
Democracy Now provided legal analysis, as did most sources. There is a very good analysis of the question of standing, Michele Goodwin is a strong commentator since she can address the health issues as well as the legal.
Other Stories
The first over-the-counter oral contraceptive was introduced this month.
Primary care clinicians have largely welcomed the arrival of Opill, the first over-the-counter (OTC) birth control pill from Perrigo, which will reach US pharmacy shelves this month. Although the medicine has a long track record of safe use, physicians and nurse practitioners may want to ready themselves to answer questions from patients about shifting to the option.
The switch to OTC status for the norgestrel-only contraceptive has the support of many physician groups, including the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Family Physicians, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG).
The end of the prescription-requirement removes a barrier to access for many women, especially those who lack insurance. But it also will take away a chief reason many women in their childbearing years make appointments with doctors, as they will no longer need prescriptions for birth control pills.
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For some mysterious, Saudi Arabia (remember what a big deal it was when Saudi women were given the right to drive?) was named to lead the UN Commission on Women. The linked article includes an appalling list of some Saudi laws that make women’s inferior status blatantly obvious.
However, the law stipulates that a woman has to obtain a male guardian’s permission to marry. Under the law, a wife has to obey her husband in a “reasonable manner”, while her husband’s financial support is dependent on the wife’s “obedience”.
Refusal to have sex with her husband, live in the marital home or travel with him without a “legitimate excuse” can also justify the withdrawal of financial support under the law. Amnesty International said a leaked draft of a forthcoming new penal code “fails to protect women and girls from all forms of gender-based violence”.
“Saudi Arabia’s election as chair of the UN Commission on the Status of Women shows shocking disregard for women’s rights everywhere,” Louis Charbonneau, UN director at the Human Rights Watch (HRW), said.
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The Taliban in Afghanistan has issued an edict that resumes stoning women in public.
The news was met by horror but not surprise by Afghan women’s right groups, who say the dismantling of any remaining rights and protection for the country’s 14 million women and girls is now almost complete.
Sahar Fetrat, an Afghan researcher at Human Rights Watch, said: “Two years ago, they didn’t have the courage they have today to vow stoning women to death in public; now they do.
“They tested their draconian policies one by one, and have reached this point because there is no one to hold them accountable for the abuses. Through the bodies of Afghan women, the Taliban demand and command moral and societal orders. We should all be warned that if not stopped, more and more will come.”
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A nine-year-iold Palestinian girl in Gaza, Lama Jamous, is reporting on conditions there, using social media to spread her stories to 883,000 followers on Instagram.
"We want the bombing to stop. Wherever we go, there is bombardment. We need a safe zone, we don't want war," Lama told Al Jazeera, citing the effect of the war on children, "who are starving and suffering," who "want to return to our homes and schools and to be able to play with our friends again." In the closing shot of the video posted on Al Jazeera's website, Lama addresses viewers in English, surrounded by a group of children: "Our message to the world – please stop the war."
Despite widespread admiration for Lama on social media, her efforts also reflect the disturbing absurdity of a nine-year-old reporting on war, and from the perspective of the children suffering under it. In December, the spokesman for UNICEF, James Elder, called Gaza "the most dangerous place in the world to be a child." In her capacity as an aspiring journalist, she is also increasingly vulnerable. As of March 1, 89 Palestinian journalists have been killed in Gaza since the war began.
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Native News Online celebrates Marcella Rose LeBeau for Women’s History Month.
Born in Promise, South Dakota, her grandmother gave her Native name: Wigmunke’ Waste Win’, which means Pretty Rainbow Woman. She became a nurse in 1942 and one year later, LaBeau enlisted in the Army Nurse Corp, and served as a combat nurse during World War II where she served the the “Greatest Generation” wounded solidiers.
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After World War II, LeBeau returned home to the Cheyenne River Sioux and worked as a nurse and other positions for the Indian Health Service.
She eventually entered tribal politics and served on the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribal Council from 1991 to 1995.
Her advocacy led Lebeau even at 100 years-old to still work to have the medals of honor rescinded of those U.S. Calvary servicemen who participated in the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre that left close to 300 Lakota men, women and children dead. She was instrumental in getting the Remove the Stain Act introduced in Congress.
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As always, thanks to the WoW group for links and discussion. This week that includes mettle fatigue, Tara TASW, and SandraLLAP.