Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Mail-Order Mifepristone Access Restored For A Week, Sowing Confusion
NPR: Abortion Pill Mifepristone Gets A 1-Week Reprieve From Supreme Court
Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito on Monday put a one-week hold on major changes to how the abortion pill mifepristone can be prescribed. The ruling temporarily restores nationwide access to a drug used for most medication abortions in the U.S. On Friday, an appeals court had said the Food and Drug Administration needed to revert to rules that the pills, part of a two-drug regimen for medication abortion, must be prescribed only in-person. The change was effective immediately for the whole country. (Godoy and Simmons-Duffin, 5/4)
Axios: Abortion Pill Rulings Cause Confusion
Nationwide access to abortion pills is again in legal limbo, almost two years after the Supreme Court threw out a case challenging mail-order prescribing of the widely used drug mifepristone. A circuit court ruling on Friday that dramatically dialed back access to the drug has caused confusion for pharmacies, telehealth companies and other clinicians, even in states where abortion is legal. (Goldman and Sullivan, 5/5)
In other reproductive health news —
Stat: Studying Maternal Mortality Expands To Paternal Mortality, Too
Maternal health is a known crisis in the U.S., where pregnant women and new mothers die at a rate several times higher than in comparable countries. In recent years, increased awareness of the problem has led to interventions at the federal and state level and a strengthening of surveillance and data collection. Even as sizable improvements continue to be elusive, the picture of how many new mothers are dying, and why, is becoming clearer. A research letter published on Monday in JAMA Pediatrics argues fathers deserve similar attention. (Merelli, 5/4)
MedPage Today: Study Examines If Prenatal Exposure To Sedatives Is Linked To Psych Disorders
Prenatal exposure to sedative drugs used for anxiety and insomnia was not associated with an increased risk of psychiatric or neurodevelopmental conditions in children when accounting for familial factors, a large population-based cohort study from South Korea indicated. (Monaco, 5/1)
CIDRAP: Nirsevimab Monoclonal Antibody For RSV Well Tolerated In Infants, Study Suggests
A large Canadian study suggests that nirsevimab, a long-acting monoclonal antibody used to prevent respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), is well tolerated in infants, with mostly mild, temporary symptoms following immunization. The study, led by researchers at the University of British Columbia and published in the most recent issue of Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics, used parent-completed questionnaires to assess safety data from 1,559 infants during the 2024–25 RSV season. The questionnaires were completed in the week following immunization. (Bergeson, 5/4)
CIDRAP: Antibiotic Resistance Is Rising In Invasive E Coli Found In US Newborns, Study Finds
An analysis of invasive Escherichia coli samples from newborns at a US pediatric hospital found rising rates of resistance to recommended antibiotics, researchers reported today in Open Forum Infectious Diseases. (Dall, 5/4)
