Ally Whelan
@amwhelan.bsky.social
Assistant Professor at Georgia State College of Law Reproductive health, rights, and justice; health & FDA law; social justice; and dogs. 🐶 Views are my own.
The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday approved the first mRNA flu vaccine, enabling use of a technology that will make it easier to rapidly target a widely prevalent or particularly virulent strain of the virus.
F.D.A. Approves Moderna’s mRNA Flu Vaccine (Gift Article)
The agency had initially refused to even review the application but reversed course after a public outcry.
nytimes.com
Every military leader since antiquity: wars are won by logistics hegseth: you win wars when military look like fitness influencers
y'all, just get a spray tan... An unregulated injectable peptide popping up across social media-melanotan II (the Barbie Peptide)-promises a sunless tan, but the product - carries risks, dermatologists said. This peptide is being used by to "to basically get a tan without getting UV exposure."
What Is the 'Barbie Peptide' and Why Is It Risky?
Dermatologists weigh in on the injectable trend
medpagetoday.com
This is so awful. And I really hope that if there’s a patient who received Ms Barksdale’s results in error that she was still able to receive a correct diagnosis in a timely manner to give her the best possible chance at recovery.
Georgia woman sues over full hysterectomy after cancer misdiagnosis
Cassandra Barksdale alleges Kaiser Permanente mishandled a tissue sample after she sought help with abnormal bleeding, leading to the removal of her uterus and ovaries.
nbcnews.com
Two wins for abortion rights: Voters in Kansas and Missouri easily defeated ballot measures that could have threatened abortion access in their states
Kansas voters rejected a ballot measure that would have made members of the state’s Supreme Court electable by popular vote — a seemingly technical issue that had become a proxy battle for the future of abortion rights in the state, Decision Desk HQ projects. https://bit.ly/4c3fG0d
Kansas voters reject another attempt to reshape the state’s abortion landscape
Reproductive rights supporters framed the ballot measure to elect state justices as an attempt to weaken abortion rights.
19thnews.org
This was inevitable post-Dobbs. The anti-abortion movement was never going to be satisfied with abortion being legal in any state
Josh Gerstein@joshgerstein.bsky.social · 2d agoNEW: Amid AG confirmation battle, Todd Blanche assured anti-abortion activists that he's working to make Dobbs 'permanent in every single state.' Admin will act 'soon' to limit mail-order abortion drugs. w/ @alicemiranda.bsky.social www.politico.com/news/2026/08...
Feed their family or pay rent. Fill a prescription or pay rent. Tough decisions are being made across the country as families are being kicked off SNAP and their wallets are getting even tighter. How one food pantry in Ohio is trying to keep up with the demand. #ConnectwithJacob
‘BUSIER THAN EVER’: Families KICKED off SNAP are turning to food banks
The realities of Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act are kicking in. It’s millions of families – kids – being kicked off of critical SNAP benefits. States are now scrambling to meet a September deadlin...
msnbc.com
Ugh. Nationwide abortion BAN. We need an edit button, @bsky.app
Ally Whelan@amwhelan.bsky.social · 2d agoIn listening to the audio, it’s clear that Blanche is suggesting strategies restrict or ban abortion nationwide. What he gets wrong, however, is that “making Dobbs permanent” does not means nationwide abortion bad. As bad as Dobbs was, what it stands for is returning abortion TO THE STATES.
In listening to the audio, it’s clear that Blanche is suggesting strategies restrict or ban abortion nationwide. What he gets wrong, however, is that “making Dobbs permanent” does not means nationwide abortion bad. As bad as Dobbs was, what it stands for is returning abortion TO THE STATES.
Kathleen Bachynski@bachynski.bsky.social · 2d agoBlanche’s remarks “go far beyond the actions on abortion he promised during his confirmation hearing. They also conflict with promises President Donald Trump made on the campaign trail to keep the federal government from enforcing restrictions on the pills.”
If conservatives in power are truly concerned about fertility rates and declining population, let’s start by making sure our mothers and babies are healthy and have access to affordable healthcare to give them the best chance to thrive
Mississippi Free Press@mississippifreepress.org · 2d agoMississippi recorded an infant mortality rate of 9.7 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2024, the highest the state has seen in more than a decade, according to the Mississippi State Department of Health.
NEW from @joshgerstein.bsky.social & me: As his confirmation to lead DOJ hung by a thread last week, acting AG Todd Blanche told faith leaders on a private call that he was preparing to take action to roll back abortion access nationwide. www.politico.com/news/2026/08...
Blanche pledged abortion pill crackdown in private religious call: ‘We’re putting practices and policies in place’
The acting attorney general made the remarks during a private call with faith leaders.
politico.com
In an outbreak update Monday, Aug. 3, state health officials said two people with significant underlying health conditions died. Their condition “may have been impacted by cyclosporiasis and dehydration,” according to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.
2 deaths linked to parasite outbreak in Michigan — MLive.com
Two Michigan residents sickened with cyclosporiasis, the intestinal illness caused by food contaminated with the Cyclospora parasite, have died.
apple.news
If you can afford, please set up an ongoing donation to your city food shelf. stlfoodbank.org
St. Louis Area Foodbank | Member of Feeding America
St. Louis Area Foodbank is increasing access to nutritious food while improving the quality of life for our neighbors in need.
stlfoodbank.org
Ally Whelan@amwhelan.bsky.social · 3d agoSNAP, “The largest food assistance program in the U.S. is undergoing a massive overhaul. But even before the most drastic changes take effect, more than 4 million people are estimated to have already lost the critical food aid between last July and April — many of whom are children.”
SNAP, “The largest food assistance program in the U.S. is undergoing a massive overhaul. But even before the most drastic changes take effect, more than 4 million people are estimated to have already lost the critical food aid between last July and April — many of whom are children.”
Over 4 million people are no longer receiving food aid amid sweeping changes to SNAP
SNAP, also known as food stamps, has seen a rapid and consistent participation decline since last July. The drop comes as the program faces historic cuts and changes.
npr.org
A good commander values "creativity, openness to new ideas & dissent, overcoming petty conventions and regulations, promoting the best & brightest, and embracing the unconventional...but under Hegseth, it’s far more important to be white, male, and clean-shaven." foreignpolicy.com/2026/07/31/h...
The Book That Predicted Pete Hegseth’s Failures
‘On the Psychology of Military Incompetence’ examines the narrow minds of petty men.
foreignpolicy.com
Those who believe things like this are working hard at not understanding the finite options available to someone whose abuser has not been prosecuted, found guilty, etc. by the law. And how rarely those things happen to abusers, esp. high-status white male abusers.
The Bulwark@thebulwark.com · 4d agoRep. Max Miller: "These are incredibly serious criminal accusations. If these accusations were true, I would be in jail — I would be. My former wife would not have been offering to cook me dinner and inviting me to playgrounds. Think about that."
"very little time to practice" didtrumpgolftoday.com
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 3d agoTrump: “The Winning Shot in the Bedminster Club Championship! Thank you very much to all of those who participated. I won with a 70, & am so honored in that, unlike the rest of the field, I’m given very little time to practice, bc I’m focused on many other things. It’s called TALENT, and I have it”
If you’ve ever been around women with children who are victims of domestic abuse, none of what he says of his ex-wife’s behavior will strike you as necessarily inconsistent with her allegations.
The Bulwark@thebulwark.com · 4d agoRep. Max Miller: "My former wife has claimed that during a custody exchange at my home that day, I assaulted her…If I had assaulted her, would she have offered to cook me dinner six days later?"
