Arielle Schecter, MD, Rutgers University

Arielle Schecter, MD is a family physician and fellow at Rutgers University in New Jersey. Through this proposed research project, Dr. Schecter seeks to leverage academic resources with her clinical training, public health background, and her commitment to building a healthier American South in the post-Dobbs abortion landscape. This mixed-methods study applies a social ecological ...Read more >

Sajal Sanan, MD, University of Minnesota

Medication abortion is a safe and effective method of pregnancy termination which now accounts for more than 60% of abortions in the US. Although prior studies have examined patient experiences and acceptability of medication abortion, most have focused on pregnancies under 77 days’ gestation. The limited qualitative research on medication abortion at later gestational durations ...Read more >

Claire Reardon, MA, University of Kentucky

Claire Reardon is a rising fourth-year doctoral candidate at the University of Kentucky in the department of Sociology. Her research examines cross-state abortion travel to Illinois, and the effect of abortion bans on individuals’ perceived ability to access care. Using semi-structured telephone interviews with 30 participants recruited through Illinois clinic partnerships, this qualitative study examines ...Read more >

Emily Newton-Hoe, MPH, MPA, Brigham and Women's Hospital

Intimate partner reproductive coercion (IPRC), a form of gender-based violence involving contraceptive sabotage, pregnancy pressure, and control of pregnancy outcomes, has recently been invoked in legal and policy arguments to restrict access to medication abortion. Some policymakers argue that mifepristone and telehealth-based abortion care enable abusive partners to coerce individuals into ending pregnancies, reframing abortion ...Read more >

Komal Kumar, MD, University of Washington

Although spirituality and attitudes on abortion care have been reviewed in medical literature, few studies have examined this connection across different healthcare professions and specialties within the same academic institution. Additionally, hospital-based abortion care requires the assistance of many healthcare workers, many of whom have been overlooked in medical literature regarding their own beliefs and ...Read more >

Alicia Jen, MPH, Columbia University

Asian American youth are often omitted from sexual health research or characterized as a low-risk population, in part due to relatively lower levels of sexual activity. However, there is evidence that female Asian adolescents and young adults who are sexually active may be less likely to use condoms or effective contraception than their peers. Immigrant ...Read more >

Sofia Filippa, MPH, Emory University

Adolescents and young adults (AYAs) face compounded barriers to abortion care, most saliently in the US South where most states have implemented total or early gestational bans as well as parental involvement laws. Amid this context, AYAs in the South might increasingly be turning to medication abortion via telehealth (TMAB), yet documentation of best practices ...Read more >

Ri'enna Boyd, MPH, Washington University in St. Louis

In Missouri, abortion access has dramatically changed in recent years. Following the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, Missouri enacted a near-total abortion ban, only for voters to pass Amendment 3 in 2024, enshrining abortion rights in the state constitution. Now, a new ballot measure threatens to undo that progress. ...Read more >

Kayla Blair, MD, MPH, University of California, San Francisco

Patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) who become pregnant are at higher risk of pregnancy loss and maternal and fetal morbidity and mortality. Additionally, some studies have found higher rates of unintended pregnancy in this population, which may be due to limited hormonal contraceptive options in the setting of SCD and thromboembolic risks. Due to ...Read more >

Alexa Beacham, MPhil, City University of New York

The attack on access to safe, reliable, and effective contraception and abortion care threatens reproductive justice. Access to information about contraceptives, like the IUD, is undermined by the spread of misleading information on social media apps such as TikTok. Repeated misleading content can deter people from making value-aligned family planning choices. While many people view ...Read more >