As demand surges, retailers ration Plan B

Plus, an unprecedented heatwave scorches Japan.

Retailers limit the sale of emergency contraception; Japan swelters in a historic heatwave.   Tonight's Sentences was written by Jariel Arvin. TOP NEWS The end of Roe sees soaring demand for Plan B Lindsey Nicholson/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images Some drugstores and online retailers are limiting sales of emergency contraceptive pills amid surging demand following the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. [Yahoo / Amrita Khalid] Amazon and Rite Aid limited purchases to three pills per customer. Tuesday, CVS removed a temporary limit it put in place to ensure equitable access once sales stabilized. [CNN / Virginia Langmaid and Naomi Thomas] Several states have moved to ban abortion post-Roe. In a concurring opinion, Justice Clarence Thomas suggested that the Court should revisit the right to contraception, though no other justice appeared to agree. [Washington Post / Christopher Rowland, Yiwen Lu, and Aaron Gregg] If taken within three days of intercourse, emergency contraceptive pills like Plan B can reduce the chance of pregnancy by stopping a fertilized egg from attaching to the uterus and temporarily blocking ovulation. [BBC / Holly Honderich] Although time-sensitive emergency contraceptive pills are legal nationwide, they're not always readily available in stores, raising the risk of pregnancy. [NPR / Maria Godoy] Japan buckles under an unprecedented heatwave Japan's residents and power grid are suffering under the country's worst June heatwave since 1875, when records began. [AccuWeather / Renee Duff] For the fifth day in a row, temperatures in Tokyo were above 95°F on Wednesday. To the northwest, the city Isesaki hit 104°F — the hottest June temperature ever recorded in Japan. [BBC] On Monday, the Japanese government urged residents to save power to avoid outages and also to use air conditioning appropriately to prevent heatstroke among the elderly. [CNN / Heather Chen, Junko Ogura and Mayumi Maruyama] Prime Minister Fumio Kishida ordered companies to increase nuclear power output to meet energy demand. Temperatures in Tokyo won't drop below 86°F until next week. [Reuters] MISCELLANEOUS A French court convicted 20 men for the 2015 terrorist attacks that killed 130 people and injured hundreds more in and around Paris. [New York Times / Constant Méheut and Aurelien Breeden] Los Angeles officials voted on Tuesday to return oceanside property Bruce's Beach to descendants of its Black owners nearly 100 years after it was seized. [BBC / David Molloy] US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi received communion at the Vatican on Wednesday. [Associated Press / Nicole Winfield] After 28 years, Justice Stephen Breyer will retire from the Supreme Court Thursday at noon. Federal Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson will replace him. [NBC News / Pete Williams]   Support our journalism   Reader contributions help keep newsletters like Sentences free for all. Support our work with a one-time gift today. Give VERBATIM "People are scrambling to feel like they can exercise control where things feel chaotic, and it is a way to try to plan where otherwise something that normally feels stable, like the rule of law, does not feel stable." [Nicole Huberfeld, a professor of law, ethics, and human rights at Boston University/ Washington Post, on the demand for Plan B] LISTEN TO THIS Lost Worlds: What killed Venus? Venus is the hottest, scariest planet in the solar system, but billions of years ago it may have been a lot like Earth, complete with an ocean of water. So, how did Venus go to hell? And could Earth be next?   Listen now   ▶ Read more from Vox Black women will suffer the most without Roe 2 winners and 3 losers from the Colorado, Illinois, Oklahoma, Utah, and New York primaries Google searches show people's questions and fears in a post-Roe America The nontoxic social media app that tells you your toxic traits Here's why Netflix made you wait a month to watch the rest of Stranger Things This email was sent to milburnkennedy@hotmail.com. Manage your email preferences or unsubscribe. If you value Vox's unique explanatory journalism, support our work with a one-time or recurring contribution.   View our Privacy Notice and our Terms of Service.   Vox Media, 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, Floor 12, Washington, DC 20036. Copyright © 2022. All rights reserved.