美国国家公共电台 NPR--Without Supreme Court intervention, abortion pill could be heavily restricted

Without Supreme¹ Court intervention², abortion³ pill could be heavily restricted

Transcript⁴

An administrative⁵ stay from the Supreme Court in a federal abortion pill case out of Texas expires late Wednesday, once again putting access to mifepristone in jeopardy⁶.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

All right. Around midnight tonight, access to abortion pills could be heavily restricted in some states.

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

That's unless the U.S. Supreme Court intervenes. Mifepristone has remained available under an emergency stay requested by the Biden administration after an appeals court order that would have restricted the drug.

MART?NEZ: NPR's Sarah McCammon joins us now for a look at what could happen next. So, Sarah, what is the Biden administration asking the Supreme Court to do?

SARAH MCCAMMON, BYLINE⁷: Well, first, it's important to understand that anti-abortion groups are trying to overturn the Food and Drug Administration's approval of the abortion pill mifepristone, and they've gotten a couple of favorable rulings from lower courts. Those are the ones on hold. So the Biden administration is asking the Supreme Court to put those rulings and any restrictions⁸ on mifepristone on hold for a longer period of time to allow for the case to be more fully⁹ argued in court. Now, in its request for an emergency stay last week, the DOJ described the litigation in this case as troubling and argued that the lower court orders would be disruptive and would, quote, "profoundly harm women, the nation's health care system, FDA and the public interest." Lawyers for the FDA, as well as outside experts, have noted¹⁰ that it would be unprecedented¹¹ for a court to overturn a drug approval that has been in place for more than two decades, as this one has, and has been used internationally for longer than that and has a well-established safety record.

MART?NEZ: What are anti-abortion groups arguing?

MCCAMMON: Well, most abortions¹² in the U.S. involve pills, and mifepristone is used in nearly all medication abortions. So some of the plaintiffs in this federal case out of Texas are doctors who oppose abortion. And they say this widespread access to the pills means they sometimes have to care for patients experiencing complications, which they say violates their beliefs. They object to the FDA's original approval of mifepristone back in 2000, as well as some rule changes that have made it more available since then, like letting pills be sent in the mail. And they cite the Comstock Act, and that's a 19th century anti-obscenity law that prohibits sending anything related to abortion in the mail.

Now, the Department of Justice said last year that doesn't apply if pills are intended for legal use. But anti-abortion groups want the Supreme Court to affirm that Comstock does apply in that way. And by the way, legal experts say that interpretation¹³ could lead to nationwide abortion restrictions if the court accepts it.

MART?NEZ: All right, Supreme Court, then - what might they do next?

MCCAMMON: Well, if the Supreme Court does nothing, an appeals court ruling would take effect that would limit access to the drugs. So in addition to prohibiting the pills from being distributed by mail, it would mean mifepristone could only be prescribed up to seven weeks of pregnancy¹⁴ instead of ten. And it could require drugmakers to relabel the pills as a result. The appeals court ruling I just mentioned would also appear to overturn the FDA's approval of a generic¹⁵ form of mifepristone. Carrie Flaxman is a lawyer with Planned Parenthood. She says all of that could have a major impact on the supply chain.

CARRIE FLAXMAN: That means that if the Supreme Court doesn't step in and block the decisions below, the majority of the mifepristone supply could disappear. Just to be clear, this judicial¹⁶ pingpong game impacting the accessibility of safe, effective, decades-long-approved medication is causing chaos¹⁷ and confusion.

MCCAMMON: It appears those new restrictions I just mentioned would apply in a majority of states, but not all. That's because 17 states and the District of Columbia are involved in a competing federal lawsuit¹⁸ in Washington state. And for states where abortion is legal, there is a second drug called misoprostol that's usually used together with mifepristone in the U.S., and that two-pill regimen is preferred. But misoprostol can be used alone, and some providers have said they're ready to move in that direction if they lose access to mifepristone.

MART?NEZ: NPR's Sarah McCammon, thanks a lot.

MCCAMMON: Thank you.

1 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

2 intervention   

n.介入，干涉，干预

参考例句：

• The government's intervention in this dispute will not help.政府对这场争论的干预不会起作用。
• Many people felt he would be hostile to the idea of foreign intervention.许多人觉得他会反对外来干预。

3 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

4 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

5 administrative   

adj.行政的，管理的

参考例句：

• The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
• He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。

6 jeopardy   

n.危险；危难

参考例句：

• His foolish behaviour may put his whole future in jeopardy.他愚蠢的行为可能毁了他一生的前程。
• It is precisely at this juncture that the boss finds himself in double jeopardy.恰恰在这个关键时刻，上司发现自己处于进退两难的境地。

7 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

8 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

9 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

10 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

11 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

12 abortions   

n.小产( abortion的名词复数 )；小产胎儿；（计划）等中止或夭折；败育

参考例句：

• The Venerable Master: By not having abortions, by not killing living beings. 上人：不堕胎、不杀生。 来自互联网
• Conclusion Chromosome abnormality is one of the causes of spontaneous abortions. 结论：染色体异常是导致反复自然流产的原因之一。 来自互联网

13 interpretation   

n.解释，说明，描述；艺术处理

参考例句：

• His statement admits of one interpretation only.他的话只有一种解释。
• Analysis and interpretation is a very personal thing.分析与说明是个很主观的事情。

14 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

15 generic   

adj.一般的，普通的，共有的

参考例句：

• I usually buy generic clothes instead of name brands.我通常买普通的衣服，不买名牌。
• The generic woman appears to have an extraordinary faculty for swallowing the individual.一般妇女在婚后似乎有特别突出的抑制个性的能力。

16 judicial   

adj.司法的，法庭的，审判的，明断的，公正的

参考例句：

• He is a man with a judicial mind.他是个公正的人。
• Tom takes judicial proceedings against his father.汤姆对他的父亲正式提出诉讼。

17 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

18 lawsuit   

n.诉讼，控诉

参考例句：

• They threatened him with a lawsuit.他们以诉讼威逼他。
• He was perpetually involving himself in this long lawsuit.他使自己无休止地卷入这场长时间的诉讼。