Texas' abortion ban is linked to increased mental health concerns among women of reproductive age, a new study finds.

Why it matters: Texas is the epicenter of the country's battle over abortion rights. Knowing whether abortion restrictions impact mental health can help guide the policy response, per the study in JAMA Network Open, published by the American Medical Association.

By the numbers: Compared with men, women in Texas experienced a nearly 7 percentage point increase in frequent mental distress associated with the state's severe abortion restrictions beginning in 2021, per the study.

The study defined frequent mental distress as 14 or more days of poor mental health during the previous 30 days.

Context: The study looked at changes following restrictions that took effect in September 2021 banning abortions at about six weeks, then one of the most restrictive state abortion laws in the nation.

• Texas later prohibited most abortions in 2022 after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

Zoom in: The rate of sepsis and pregnancy-related deaths in Texas rose after 2021, a ProPublica investigation found earlier this year.

• "It's already scary to decide to become pregnant … If something medically complex happened, you could lose your life," Dr. Emily Briggs, who practices family medicine in Central Texas, told CBS News last year.

How it works: Public health professor Jusung Lee from the University of Texas at San Antonio led the study. It analyzed data from a survey of 15,614 Texas women, 14,500 Texas men and 49,495 women in other states between 2012 and 2022.

Between the lines

Texas has seen the country's highest number of medication abortions via telehealth under shield law protections, with an average 3,427 monthly in the final quarter of 2024, per a new national report.

The big picture: The number of abortions in the U.S. continued to rise in 2024 — totaling 1.14 million — despite bans and restrictions in more than half the states, including Texas.

• Expanded telehealth access to medication abortion has allowed patients to circumvent state bans.

Stunning stat: Texas, which has a near-total ban on abortions, saw more monthly abortions by the end of 2024 than in the months before Dobbs was decided, according to the #WeCount report from the Society of Family Planning, a nonprofit that advocates for abortion access.

State of play: Shield laws are meant to provide legal protections to clinicians who offer telehealth abortion care to patients in states with restrictions.

• Yes, but: In February, a Texas judge ordered a doctor to stop prescribing and sending abortion pills under New York's shield law to patients in Texas and to pay a penalty of more than $100,000.

What's next: "This is exactly the kind of case where it really involves a conflict between states and so it's inevitable that it will make it to the Supreme Court," Carmel Shachar, director of the Health Law and Policy Clinic at Harvard Law School, told Harvard Law Today in February.

🗳️ Former Dallas congressman Colin Allred will run again for U.S. Senate next year after losing in the general election in 2024. (Axios)

🚌 CapMetro is celebrating its 40th anniversary by offering free rides across Austin on July 1. (Spectrum News)

😔 A fire destroyed a community center in Taylor. (KVUE)

Nine Austin food trucks are among the top 100 nationally, per a new tally by Yelp.

Why it matters: The list is the latest validation that both high-end and casual Austin food is among the best in the U.S.

Zoom in: Austin nabbed the most top 100 spots, followed by Portland, Oregon, and Los Angeles. Austin mentions include:

• Jim's Smokehouse (#2), a barbecue spot at Four Points, in western Travis County
• T-Loc's Sonora Hot Dogs (#8), a Mexican-style hot dog place on Burnet Road
• Paprika ATX (#19), a taco truck on North Lamar Boulevard
• Bodhi Viet Vegan (#23), a vegetarian Vietnamese spot on West Parmer Lane
• Ceviche7 (#30), a Peruvian trailer by Guadalupe and West 29th streets
• Buenos Sabores (#48), a Mexican restaurant by RM 620 and Anderson Mill Road
• Granny's Tacos (#58) — one of our favorites! — on East Seventh Street
• Flavia's Kitchen (#68), Mexican food on South Lamar Boulevard
• Boteco (#69), a Brazilian spot on Barton Springs Road

How it works: Yelp's tally was based on total volume and ratings of reviews, a representative from Yelp tells Axios.

• To qualify for the list, businesses must have passing health scores.

📬 Let us know: Which of your favorite food trucks deserve to be on this list?

• Hit reply to this email.

👋 Hello, Asher here.

• In yesterday's newsletter I mentioned the sad-seeming orphaned baby dove that found itself on my doorstep, and a bunch of you wanted to know what transpired.

What happened: We consulted with our friend, the naturalist (and former Austin City Council aide) Glen Coleman, who advised us that the bird will "dehydrate quickly in this heat."

• "If you want to fool with it, try eyedroppers of water and feed a wet mash of chick starter."
• "Let it soak for half an hour and mix in a bit, not too much, of Bulgarian yogurt or a similar probiotic."
• "Keep it warm...hydrated and hope for the best."

Dutifully following Glen's instructions, we looked after the bird for 24 hours, keeping it on our screened porch.

• It definitely won some pep to its step — my 2-year-old named it Pio Pio.

🐤 The bottom line: Over the weekend, we dropped the bird off at Austin Wildlife Rescue in East Austin. Staff said Pio Pio would be nursed back to full health.

What they're saying: "Bye-bye, Pio Pio," my toddler said the rest of the weekend.