Reproductive Justice Town Hall
Voices from the Front Lines of Health Justice:
Uniting Medical & Law Students in Education & Action
Abortion Care Post-Roe:
A View from Providers & the Lawyers Who Defend Them
May 15 from 8:00 – 9:00pmET
Join the Livestream @AMSAnational
– or –
Register Here
**Free AMSA T-shirts for the first 20 AMSA members who register**
Submit a Question for the Panel Here
Please note all submissions must be respectful and suitable for public hearing.
We will do our very best to answer as many questions as we can.
Questions can be anonymous, if preferred.
Panelists:
- Kelly Thibert DO, MPH, Chair, AMSA Foundation Board of Directors & past AMSA National President
- Kristyn Brandi MD, MPH, FACOG, Darney-Landy Fellow at the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) & immediate past Board Chair of Physicians for Reproductive Health (PRH)
- Lauren Paulk JD, Senior Research Counsel, If/When/How: Lawyering for Reproductive Justice
- Amber Khan JD, Senior Counsel, The Lawyering Project: Upholding the dignity of people seeking & providing reproductive health care
*See bios below
Moderators:
- Anna Hindman DO Candidate, AMSA Reproductive Health Liaison to the Board of Trustees
- Summer Ghaith MD/JD candidate at Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine – Arizona Campus/Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, Arizona State University
For more information please email Anna Hindman at anna.hindman@amsa.org
Panelists Bios:
Kelly Thibert DO MPH (she/her): Dr. Thibert is a family medicine physician practicing ambulatory medicine in Bradenton, Florida. She graduated from Grant Family Medicine Residency in Columbus, Ohio where she received comprehensive training enabling her to provide primary care to a full spectrum of patients and populations. She attended the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Florida where she majored in Molecular and Microbiology and minored in Women’s Studies. She attended Nova Southeastern University College of Osteopathic Medicine in South Florida where she earned her Doctorate in Osteopathic Medicine and Master of Public Health degrees. Before applying to residency, Kelly served as the National President for the American Medical Student Association (AMSA), focusing on physician and trainee wellness, reproductive healthcare including abortion, LGTBQ healthcare and fighting for quality, affordable healthcare for all. She believes that being involved in health policy and advocating for change are vital to ensuring fully comprehensive care for her patients and the communities in which they live. Kelly is passionate about comprehensive reproductive health – including abortion, health policy, medical education and social activism. She currently serves as Chair to the AMSA Foundation Board of Directors and looks forward to working with and for the members of AMSA.
Kristyn Brandi MD MPH FACOG (she/ella): Dr. Kristyn Brandi is an Obstetrician-Gynecologist with fellowship training in Family Planning. She is currently the Darney-Landy Fellow at the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). She is a board member and the immediate past Board Chair of Physicians for Reproductive Health (PRH), sits on several sub-committees for the Society of Family Planning and is a founding member of Centering Equity, Racial and Cultural Literacy in Family Planning (CERCL-FP). She has published research on contraceptive coercion by doctors to patients seeking abortion. Her master’s degree concentration focused on Health Law, Bioethics, and Human Rights, which she has focused her educational pursuits around abortion policy, contraceptive decision-making, and racial justice within medical education. She has been quoted in numerous articles on reproductive health and has written op-eds around health care to such news outlets including the Washington Post.
Lauren Paulk JD (she/her): Lauren is the Senior Research Counsel at If/When/How, where she focuses on in-depth legal research in support of If/When/How’s litigation and policy team and state and grassroots advocates. Prior to joining If/When/How, Lauren led state policy work related to reproductive health, rights and justice as Policy Counsel at the National Partnership for Women & Families; tracked and analyzed state bills on reproductive rights and health as a Senior State Legislative Fellow with the Center for Reproductive Rights; worked at the intersection of reproductive justice and LGBTQ liberation as an If/When/How Reproductive Justice Fellow at the National Center for Lesbian Rights; and supported young people in forming healthy relationships as a AmeriCorps Teen Advocate with Home Free. Lauren has authored and co-authored legal scholarship on constitutional standards for reproductive rights, international human rights law as it relates to assisted reproductive technology, and state harms at the intersection of immigration and abortion for young people in Texas.
Amber Khan JD (she/her): Amber is a Senior Counsel at The Lawyering Project. Amber joined the Lawyering Project after more than a decade in public-interest litigation and human rights advocacy. She was the Director of the Health Justice Program at NYLPI, (New York Lawyers for the Public Interest), where she focused on advancing the right to accessible healthcare through the lens of immigrant and racial justice. Prior to that, Amber was a Senior attorney at Pregnancy Justice (formerly known as the National Advocates for Pregnant Women) and the Center for Family Representation, where she defended parents being prosecuted by the civil child welfare system. Amber was also a fellow with the Foundation for International Dignity in Sierra Leone and Legal Aid Cambodia in Phnom Penh. Amber received a J.D. from George Washington University Law School, a master’s degree in Human Rights from Columbia University and a B.A. from American University. Amber’s writing on access to healthcare, immigrant rights and the criminalization of pregnancy have appeared in various publications.
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The American Medical Student Association (AMSA) believes that abortion services are a vital component of reproductive health care; that physicians who provide abortion care are essential to our communities;
and that their practice should be legally protected and available to all in need regardless of how much they earn, who they work for, or what state they live in.
The AMSA Abortion Care & Reproductive Health Project is dedicated to advancing these values and works with AMSA members, chapters, alumni, and allies to ensure a diverse physician workforce
that includes highly skilled, culturally sensitive physicians prepared to provide abortion services to those who need them in various health care workplaces.
We are honored to offer space, resources and support to connect future physicians with law students, policy-makers and other allies committed to reproductive freedom and justice for all.
