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Unpacking the fight over telehealth access to abortion medication

Mifepristone, one of two drugs approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to terminate a pregnancy before 10 weeks’ gestation, can be dispensed without an in-person visit to a healthcare provider under FDA regulations. Whether that provision will remain is the subject of a battle that may play out before the U.S. Supreme Court in the coming weeks. (Photo illustration by Natalie Behring/Getty Images) Advocates and opponents of abortion access say they’re wondering what happens next in a critical telehealth medication case that created chaos and confusion over the past week after an appeals court blocked nationwide access to the drug and, days later, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito issued a temporary stay. Alito’s stay preserves telehealth access until May 11. But it’s unclear what happens next for patients and providers. The Supreme Court on Monday temporarily blocked the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ Friday ruling to suspend a federal rule allowing telehealth pr...
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Whether Sen. Mark Kelly advised ‘disobedience’ to service members argued in appeals case

Arizona Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly speaks outside the E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse and William B. Bryant Annex in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, May 7, 2026, following oral arguments in federal appeals court in his case against the Defense Department. Former Arizona Rep. Gabby Giffords, who is married to Kelly, and supporters surround Kelly. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom) WASHINGTON — Attorneys for the Trump administration argued before a federal appeals court Thursday the Pentagon should be able to reprimand Arizona Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly for reminding members of the military they can refuse illegal orders, and for criticizing the Defense Department.  Lawyers from the Justice Department told the three-judge panel that even though Kelly, a retired Navy captain, is no longer on active duty and has no commanding officer, they believe he is still subject to disciplinary action and limited First Amendment rights.  John Bailey, an attorney in the DOJ’s civil rig...
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How a legal challenge over gender dysphoria became a fight for disability rights

Charlotte Cravins holds artwork that she and her husband, Calvin Bell, completed with their son, Landry Bell, now 2, at a children's museum in Baton Rouge, La. The family is worried that a lawsuit filed by eight states, including their home state of Louisiana, could strip protections away from people with disabilities, like Landry. (Photo courtesy of Charlotte Cravins) Charlotte Cravins’ son Landry turned 2 in January. He’s a smiley little boy who loves singing “Itsy Bitsy Spider” and recently got his first pair of glasses. Landry was born with Down syndrome and has impaired vision. He receives publicly funded therapies that have helped him learn to crawl, to pull himself up to stand, and to use American Sign Language. Landry lives with his parents and sister in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, one of the eight states whose attorney general has chosen to remain in a lawsuit challenging a federal rule that protects accommodations for people with disabilities. States are asking a federal co...
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Amid protests, flooding and evacuations, Alabama Legislature passes special election bills

Sen. Chris Elliott, R-Josephine, discusses a primary bill in the Alabama Senate on May 6, 2026 at the Alabama Statehouse in Montgomery, Alabama. The Senate approved the bill, which would allow the state to set new primary elections in two Montgomery-area state Senate districts if federal courts allow the state to use a legislative map previously declared unconstitutional. (Andrea Tinker/Alabama Reflector) The Alabama Legislature on Wednesday passed legislation that could set new primary dates for the state amid protests within the Statehouse and flooding that led the Alabama Senate to quickly pass its bill before a mass evacuation of the building.  HB 1 , sponsored by Speaker Pro Tempore Chris Pringle, R-Mobile, would allow for a new special election if the U.S. Supreme Court lifts an injunction preventing the state from redrawing congressional maps before 2030. SB 1 , sponsored by Sen. Chris Elliott, R-Josephine, affects two Montgomery-area Senate districts. The legislation drew sha...
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Alabama House approves primary bills as Republicans seek to redistrict

House Minority Leader Anthony Daniels, D-Huntsville (right) speaks to a colleague in the Alabama House of Representatives on May 6, 2026 in the Alabama Statehouse in Montgomery, Alabama. The House Wednesday debated a measure that would allow the state to set new primary dates should federal courts allow the state to revert to congressional and legislative maps previously deemed discriminatory against Black voters. To the left is Rep. Prince Chestnut, D-Selma. (Brian Lyman/Alabama Reflector) The Alabama House of Representatives Wednesday passed a bill that would change the date of primary elections in four congressional districts should the federal courts allow the state to use an old map that would alter their boundaries.  HB 1 , sponsored by Speaker Pro Tempore Chris Pringle, R-Mobile, would allow for a new special election if the U.S. Supreme Court lifts an injunction preventing the state from redrawing congressional maps before 2030. “This bill simply creates a mechanism to hold s...
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Protesters outside the White House call for ending detention for migrant families, kids

Protesters gather near the White House to urge the shutdown of immigrant family detention in the United States. Many were from Texas, distraught over the conditions in the Dilley Immigration Processing Center. (Photo by Naisha Roy | Medill News Service) By Naisha Roy/Medill News Service WASHINGTON — Dozens of people gathered on a sandy lot in front of the White House construction zone Tuesday evening, carrying posters peppered with monarch butterflies and unfurling massive banners reading “Set kids free.” The butterflies symbolized immigrants without legal status, as the protesters called to abolish all detention facilities in the United States as part of a “Close the Camps” vigil and protest organized by the Coalition to End Family and Child Detention. “Migration is beautiful,” said Anat Shenker-Osorio, a communications manager for advocacy groups that helped organize the event. “People move, and that should be celebrated.” Many of the protesters were from Texas, rallying agai...
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Alabama House, Senate committees approve bills that could alter primary elections

Rep. A.J. McCampbell, D-Linden (left) questions Rep. Chris Pringle, R-Mobile (foreground) about a bill that would allow new primary elections if the U.S. Supreme Court allows the state to redistrict on May 5, 2026 at the Alabama Statehouse in Montgomery, Alabama. (Brian Lyman/Alabama Reflector) Two legislative committees Tuesday advanced bills that could lead to new primary dates in Alabama, if federal courts allow state to revert back to congressional and legislative maps previously ruled racially discriminatory. HB 1 , sponsored by Speaker Pro Tempore Chris Pringle, R-Mobile, would allow for a new special election if the U.S. Supreme Court lifts an injunction preventing the state from redrawing congressional maps before 2030. Secretary of State Wes Allen and Attorney General Steve Marshall sought to have the injunction removed last week after the U.S. Supreme Court significantly weakened a key part of the Voting Rights Act.  “This allows us to have a special election using the pla...
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