Wyo. Governor Signs Legislation That Effectively Ends Surgical Abortions
The new law requires clinics providing procedural abortions to be licensed as ambulatory surgical centers and will likely force the only such clinic to close, Wyoming Public Radio reported. Plus: Montana lawmakers have shelved an abortion travel ban.
Wyoming Public Radio:
The Future Of Procedural Abortion In Wyoming Is In Doubt After Gordon Signs Bill
A bill requiring clinics providing procedural abortions to be licensed as ambulatory surgical centers was signed by Republican Gov. Mark Gordon on Feb. 27. It goes into effect immediately. HB 42 will likely cause the closure of the only such clinic in the state, Wellspring Health Access in Casper. (Clements, 2/27)
Daily Montanan:
Montana House Tables 'Abortion Travel' Bill After Emotional Testimony
A bill that would have potentially criminalized travel for women who went out of state for an abortion died in the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday. (Ehrlick, 2/27)
In other health news from across the U.S. —
Politico:
New York City Health Clinic Now Asking For Proof Of Citizenship, Citing Trump
A prominent community health center with a long legacy of treating asylum-seekers is now requesting patients’ proof of citizenship, in an apparent response to the Trump administration’s broad threats to federal funding and anti-immigrant rhetoric. The Floating Hospital in Queens is asking patients to show their Social Security cards or other proof of citizenship, citing an unspecified executive order by the Trump administration, according to an audio recording reviewed by POLITICO and two city lawmakers who were briefed on the matter and granted anonymity to speak candidly about a sensitive issue. (Kaufman, 2/27)
Military.Com:
Retired 4-Star Officers Join Suit To House Homeless Veterans At California VA Medical Center
Adm. William McRaven, a former Navy SEAL, and two other retired four-star officers have joined a lawsuit to force the Department of Veterans Affairs to build more housing for homeless veterans on the grounds of the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center. The failure of the VA to address the housing needs of veterans poses "a direct threat to national security" in the long term, according to the brief filed by McRaven, who as head of Joint Special Operations Command oversaw the 2011 raid by SEAL Team 6 that killed Osama Bin Laden. (Sisk, 2/27)
Capitol News Illinois:
Illinois’ Noncitizen Healthcare Outstripped Cost, Audit Finds
A pair of health care programs that benefit noncitizens — one of which is already on Gov. JB Pritzker’s budgetary chopping block — far outstripped its original estimated price tag and cost the state of Illinois $1.6 billion through last summer, according to a new audit of the programs published Wednesday. (Meisel, 2/27)
KFF Health News:
A Runner Was Hit By A Car, Then By A Surprise Ambulance Bill
Jagdish Whitten was on a run in July 2023 when a car hit him as he crossed a busy San Francisco street. Whitten, then 25, described doing “a little flip” over the vehicle and landing in the street before getting himself to the curb. Concerned onlookers called an ambulance. But Whitten instead had friends pick him up and take him to a nearby hospital, the Helen Diller Medical Center, operated by the University of California-San Francisco. “I knew that ambulances were expensive, and I didn’t think I was going to die,” he said. (West, 2/28)
