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There are more than a million abortions in the U.S. last year.

A quarter of those were done via telehealth.

That's according to a June report from the Society of Family Planning.

That's when a provider in a state where abortion is legal meets with a patient virtually and sends them pills to take

at home to end a pregnancy. Those patients come from states all over the country, including those with

abortion bans. Now attorneys general in Texas and Louisiana are suing a doctor in New York

for prescribing pills to patients in their states where abortion is almost completely banned. New York is one of several

states that has enacted shield laws after the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Shield laws protect abortion

practitioners from being jailed or fined for treating patients in other states through telehealth.

Now that conversation has evolved into a battle between states. The Supreme Court is expected to weigh in on the

issue soon, and its decision could drastically change access to abortion nationwide. So what's at

stake in this case, and how does states' rights become the latest flashpoint in the battle over

abortion access? We get into all that and more after this short break. I'm Jen White. You're listening to the 1A podcast.

Stay with us.

Joining us from San Francisco, California, is Brittany Fredrickson.

She's the associate director for women's health policy at KFF.

Brittany, welcome to the program. Good morning, John. Also with us is Rachel Rebusier. She's a law professor at the University of Texas School of Law. She's also a leading scholar in reproductive health law and family law. She joins us from New York. Rachel, welcome. Thank you. Thanks for having me. And Shafali Lutra. She's a reproductive health reporter at the 19th. That's an independent nonprofit newsroom reporting on gender, politics,

policy, and power. Shafali, it's always great to have you. It's great to be here.

Shafali, just set the scene for us. How would you describe this state of the nation's patchwork of

...