Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Overseas Nonprofits Shipping More Abortion Pills To US
U.S. companies that prescribe abortion pills after telehealth consultations are expanding, but only in states that allow the practice, after the Supreme Court last month removed constitutional protections for abortion. Nonprofits based abroad, meanwhile, are mailing more pills to women across the U.S., including patients in states that have banned or restricted medication abortion. (Abbott and Montes, 7/18)
Demand for abortion pills is soaring following last month's Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, even as states move to ban or restrict access. (Gonzalez and Gold, 7/18)
On how medical training is changing 鈥
Virtual training and practice on anatomical models may soon become the norm for how OB-GYN residents learn how to safely conduct abortions as medical programs navigate new state abortion bans. (Dreher and Gonzalez, 7/19)
When Ariela Schnyer was choosing where to get trained as a nurse-midwife, California stood out for an important reason: The state would allow clinicians like her to provide abortions. But three years later, after graduating from her nurse-midwifery program at UC San Francisco, Schnyer is not yet prepared to provide abortions that require hands-on care. After the news broke that Roe vs. Wade had been overturned 鈥 a shift that is expected to send more abortion patients to California 鈥 Schnyer was trying to find out whether she could get trained in Mexico City. (Reyes, 7/18)
The American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology exams are voluntary, but certification lends respect to doctors鈥 credentials, indicating they graduated from an accredited medical school and passed written and oral competency exams. Some employers also require the tests. The Dallas-based board had held virtual exams during the pandemic but planned to have the upcoming fall oral exams in-person. On Thursday, the board announced a reversal, saying the exams would be virtual. (Tanner, 7/18)
The tech industry's role in abortion 鈥
Figures from Google, one of the most prolific collectors of location data, show that the company received 5,764 鈥済eofence鈥 warrants between 2018 and 2020 from police in the 10 states that have banned abortion as of July 5. These warrants demand GPS data showing which mobile devices were present in a specified area during a particular time period, and can help investigate individuals who were present at crime scenes or other locations of interest. (Ng, 7/18)
The Markup has found that Facebook is serving up ads and posts for the 鈥渁bortion pill reversal鈥 procedure, a medically unapproved and potentially dangerous process that the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists says is 鈥渘ot based on science.鈥 (Kirchner, Varner and Waller, 7/19)