 | Fri, Jul 01, 2022 | | | |
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Think a friend or colleague should be getting this newsletter? Share this link with them to sign up. Confusion reigned this week as the battle over abortion moved to the states in the wake of the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. Demand for emergency contraceptive pills soared, with Amazon putting temporary limits on how many orders customers could place. Women are also likely to increasingly turn to internet companies based overseas to order the abortion pill, mifepristone, even though importing medicine from abroad is technically forbidden by the FDA.
And state courts in Kentucky, Louisiana, Texas and Utah temporarily blocked abortion bans from going in to effect, allowing clinics to reopen to patients. In Covid news, the FDA told vaccine makers to start developing shots that target the omicron BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants ahead of an expected fall booster campaign. And the World Health Organization said monkeypox cases in Europe have tripled, calling for urgent action to contain the outbreak. The U.S. is broadening access to vaccines to protect people at high risk from the virus. Feel free to send any tips, suggestions, story ideas and data in the meantime to me at spencer.kimball@nbcuni.com. |
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Women in states that ban abortion will still be able to end unwanted pregnancies with abortion pills ordered online from overseas, though the legal situation is murky and carries potential risks.
Aid Access, an international telemedicine abortion provider, told CNBC it will continue mailing pills to women in all U.S. states, including those that banned the procedure. Its European doctors provide online consultations and write prescriptions for the pills, which are then filled and mailed by a pharmacy in India. | |
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Though state laws banning abortions contain exceptions when the life of the pregnant person is threatened, doctors say these situations are not at all clear-cut, and the laws' ambiguity will threaten patient safety.
Already in Texas, where a ban at about six weeks has been in effect since September, clinicians and patients report disruptions in care for things like ectopic pregnancies and ruptured membranes. |
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Amazon has limited sales of emergency contraceptive pills as demand spikes following last week's U.S. Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade and ending the constitutional right to have an abortion.
The company has placed a temporary quantity limit of three units per week on emergency contraceptive pills, Amazon confirmed to CNBC. |
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Dr. Peter Marks, head of the FDA's vaccine division, said manufacturers should update their shots to target omicron BA.4 and BA.5 in addition to the original strain of the virus that first emerged in Wuhan, China. The FDA wants to update the booster shots to provide longer lasting protection ahead of the fall, when public health experts expect another wave of infection as immunity from the vaccines wanes and people spend more time indoors — where Covid spreads more easily — in the colder weather. |
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More than 1.5 million Americans 13 and older identify as transgender. For many, finding a doctor who specializes in gender- affirming care can be a challenge. Colorado start-up called Plume is using its telehealth as a platform to provide greater access and support for transgender patients, even as more states mount legal challenges to the right to gender-affirming care. |
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The World Health Organization on Friday warned that urgent action is needed to contain the spread of monkeypox in Europe, as cases have tripled over the past two weeks.
Henri Kluge, the head of WHO Europe, called on governments to ramp efforts to prevent monkeypox from establishing itself on the continent, warning that time is of the essence.
"Urgent and coordinated action is imperative if we are to turn a corner in the race to reverse the ongoing spread of this disease," Kluge said.
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is recommending that people who have had confirmed or presumed monkeypox exposures get vaccinated against the virus. Vaccination should occur within two weeks of exposure to the virus, but the sooner the better, according to the CDC.
The U.S. is immediately releasing 56,000 doses of the Jynneos vaccine from the strategic national stockpile, which will be followed by 240,000 doses in the coming weeks. A total of 1.6 million doses of Jynneos will be available in the fall. |
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