Slate Health

A new law in Utah that goes into effect next year states that anyone under 18 needs parental permission to use social media. Is it a necessary step to protect children from harms associated with social media, or are we blunting a tool of expression for the youth? 

Guest: Dr. Mitch Prinstein, chief science officer at American Psychological Association

Host: Lizzie O’Leary

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There’s a terrible legal Easter egg in Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk’s ruling on the abortion medication, Mifepristone. And that same Easter egg makes an appearance in the Fifth Circuit’s partial stay. It’s the Comstock Act - a mostly forgotten 19th century vice statute that is suddenly the anti-abortion movement’s favorite zombie legislation. On a special extra episode of Amicus, Dahlia Lithwick is joined by Mary Ziegler, an expert on the law, history, and politics of reproduction, health care, and conservatism in the United States from 1945 to the present. Together, they tackle the chaos upon chaos of the past week’s medication abortion cases, and take a long hard look at the next steps in the anti-abortion movement’s fight for a nationwide ban. 

In this week’s Amicus Plus segment, Dahlia is joined by Slate’s Mark Joseph Stern to discuss the “quid pro Crow” of Justice Clarence Thomas’ real estate deals with GOP mega donor, and avid court-watcher, and amicus-brief-funder Harlan Crow. 

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This week, David Plotz and Emily Bazelon discuss the federal court rulings on the F.D.A.-approved abortion medication mifepristone, the expulsion of two Democratic representatives by the Republican-supermajority state legislature in Tennessee, and Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ latest ethics problem. 

Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:

Adam Unikowsky for Adam’s Legal Newsletter: “Mifepristone and the rule of law, part II”

Allison McCann for the New York Times: “Inside the Online Market for Overseas Abortion Pills”

Joshua Kaplan, Justin Elliott, and Alex Mierjeski for ProPublica: “Clarence Thomas and the Billionaire”

Sylvie McNamara for the Washingtonian: “Clarence Thomas’s Billionaire Benefactor Collects Hitler Artifacts”

Chenjerai Kumanyika for This American Life: “Ghost Industrial Complex”

Here are this week’s chatters:

Emily: Vladimir: A Novel by Julia May Jonas

David: The D.C. Sing-Along; The Dropout on Hulu; Air (Amazon Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Listener chatter from David Foreman: Rosemary Mosco for Audubon: “Meet the Little Brown Bird That Holds a Mirror Up to Humanity”

For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David and Emily discuss the Hitler memorabilia collected by Harlan Crow, Texas billionaire and friend of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.

Email your questions and chatters to [email protected] or tweet us @SlateGabfest. (Messages may be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

Podcast production by Cheyna Roth

Research by Julie Huygen

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Last week a federal judge in Texas refuted the FDA approval for mifepristone, a pill used for medication abortions, which would suspend that approval across the country.

But some experts say - plenty of drugs don’t have FDA approval, and are still widely distributed… from baby formula, to multivitamins. 

Guest: Rachel Rebouché, dean and James E. Beasley professor of law at the Temple University Beasley School of Law and faculty fellow at the Center for Public Health Law Research.

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The FDA just approved a version of Narcan, the most commonly used version of the overdose prevention medicine naloxone, for over-the-counter sales. The move comes in response to overdose deaths steadily rising since the late ‘70s and around 100,000 Americans dying from overdose just last year. What took so long?

Guest: Nancy D. Campbell, department head at Rensselaer’s department of science and technology studies, author of OD: Naloxone and the Politics of Overdose.

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John has spent years training to become a Pararescueman, a member of Air Force Special Warfare tasked with recovering downed military personnel around the globe. He has pushed himself past countless obstacles and trials, except one — holding his breath in the pool. On this episode of How To!, co-host Carvell Wallace is joined by free diving expert and founder of the Performance Free Dive Academy Kirk Krack. Kirk has spent decades mastering the art of lowering his heart rate and increasing his capacity to hold his breath. He has advised everyone from Navy SEALs to the cast members of Avatar 2: The Way of Water. He even helped Sigourney Weaver go without a gulp of air for over 6 minutes! Kirk gives John tips for extending his breathholds under water and explains why all of us should be more conscious of how we breathe.

If you liked this episode, check out: “How To Withstand Pain”

Do you wonder how to push yourself past your limits? Send us a note at [email protected] or leave us a voicemail at 646-495-4001 and we might have you on the show. Subscribe for free on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen.

Podcast production by Derek John, Rosemary Belson, Kevin Bendis and Jabari Butler.

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When Justin’s mom was diagnosed with cancer, he knew he wanted to keep talking to her after she died. So together they made an AI version of her, training it on her speech patterns and memories. Now he is scaling his findings so that anyone can continue their relationships with loved ones after their deaths. Justin even believes this can one day lead to digital immortality.

Grief experts are only now dealing with bereaved people who create digital versions of their loved ones. We look at what they say about the phenomenon, and what philosophers think about whether the best AI version of a person can actually be them.

Guests include Alexandra Salmon, Justin Harrison, CEO of You, Only Virtual, Dr. Mary-Frances O’Connor, and Dr. Debra Bassett.

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A federal judge has struck down a provision in the Affordable Care Act requiring private insurers to provide preventive care—screenings and the like—at no cost to patients. 

But preventive care is a good investment for insurance companies and for national health. It’s something Americans already don’t get enough of — but is anyone willing to step in and save it?

Guest: Julie Rovner, chief Washington correspondent Kaiser Health News, host of the “What the Health” podcast

If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Amicus—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our work.

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On today’s episode of Hear Me Out… the right to life and socialized healthcare walk into a delivery room.

Writer and journalist Liz Bruenig joins Celeste to discuss her vision for a United States where childbirth costs nothing. In a nation with skyrocketing healthcare costs, attacks on reproductive rights, and potential rollbacks on preventive care, we tell birthing people that not only do they have to give birth — they have to court financial ruin in order to do it. 

Liz says it doesn’t have to be this way… and yes, we can pay for it. Moreover, it might be the rare issue where both sides of the aisle can find some common ground. 

Podcast production by Maura Currie

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On this episode: Zak and Jamilah are joined by Evan Urquhart. Evan covers anti-trans propaganda on Assigned Media, writes for Slate, and manages Slate’s comments section. 

Today we’re going to be talking with Evan about his recent piece, There Are Two Sides to the Debate on Health Care for Trans Kids. Here’s What You’re Missing About One of Them. People and resources mentioned: Julia Serano, Assigned Media, and Trans Safety Network. 

Recommendations: 

Jamilah recommends the Dear Culture podcast. 

Evan recommends the Washington Post-KFF Trans in America survey. 

Zak recommends letting kids watch TV during breakfast on school days. 

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Podcast produced by Rosemary Belson and Maura Currie.

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