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The future of mifepristone

FILE - Boxes of the drug mifepristone sit on a shelf at the West Alabama Women's Center in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on March 16, 2022. The Supreme Court is deciding whether women will face restrictions in getting a drug used in the most common method of abortion in the United States, while a lawsuit continues. (AP Photo/Allen G. Breed, File)
Allen G. Breed/AP
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AP
Boxes of the drug mifepristone sit on a shelf at the West Alabama Women's Center in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on March 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Allen G. Breed, File)

The Supreme Court has rejected a challenge of the Food & Drug Administration’s approval and regulation of mifepristone, preserving access to one of two pills commonly used in medication abortions across the U.S. On this week’s 51%, we break down the Court’s ruling with Carmel Shachar, faculty director of the Health Law and Policy Clinic at Harvard Law School’s Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation.

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Guests: Carmel Shachar, assistant clinical professor of law at Harvard Law School; Chelly Hegan, president and CEO of Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood; Patricia McGeown, former president and CEO of Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood

51% is a national production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio. Jesse King is our producer and host. Our associate producer is Jody Cowan, and our theme is "Lolita" by the Albany-based artist Girl Blue.

51%
Jesse King is the host of WAMC's national program on women's issues, "51%," and the station's bureau chief in the Hudson Valley. She has also produced episodes of the WAMC podcast "A New York Minute In History."
Sarah has worked in public radio since 2006. She grew up in Saranac Lake, New York where she worked part-time at Pendragon Theatre all through high school and college. She graduated from UAlbany in 2006 with a BA in English and started at WAMC a few weeks later as a part-time board-op in the control room. Through a series of offered and seized opportunities she is now the Senior Contributing Producer of The Roundtable and Producer of The Book Show. During the main thrust of the Covid-19 pandemic shut-down, Sarah hosted a live Instagram interview program "A Face for Radio Video Series." On it, Sarah spoke with actors, musicians, comedians, and artists about the creative activities they were accomplishing and/or missing. She is on the board of WAM Theatre and lives in Albany, New York with her husband, Paul, and their dog, Doritos.
Related Content
  • The accessibility of the key abortion medication mifepristone hangs in the balance after a federal judge in Texas ruled earlier this month to suspend the Food & Drug Administration’s approval of the drug. On this week's 51%, we discuss the ins and outs of the case.
  • The Supreme Court has ruled to protect access to the key abortion pill mifepristone for now, as a legal battle over its 23-year approval by the Food and Drug Administration makes its way through the courts. On this week’s 51%, we speak with Columbia Law School’s Katherine Franke about the Texas case that started it all, and what lies ahead in America’s struggle over abortion rights.