Texas Revamps Anti-Abortion Program, Requires Nonprofits To Detail Spending
Thriving Texas Families, a network that supports parenting and adoption as alternatives to abortion and has had little oversight, will take in $100 million a year starting Sept. 1. More news from across the nation comes from Ohio, Minnesota, Maryland, California, and New Jersey.
ProPublica:
TX Overhauls Wasteful Anti-Abortion Program That Has Had Little Oversight
Texas health officials are overhauling a program designed to steer people away from abortion following a ProPublica and CBS News investigation that found that the state had funneled tens of millions of taxpayer dollars into the effort while providing little oversight of the spending. The money has been flowing to a network of nonprofit organizations that are part of Thriving Texas Families, a state program that supports parenting and adoption as alternatives to abortion and provides counseling, material assistance and other services. (Jaramillo and Kohler, 7/10)
The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer:
Ohio Court Allows Advanced Practice Clinicians To Provide Medication Abortions
A Hamilton County judge granted a third preliminary injunction on Tuesday blocking Ohio from enforcing state restrictions that could prevent advanced practice clinicians from providing medication abortions. The restrictions, the court held, likely violate reproductive rights guaranteed in the Ohio Constitution. (McGowan, 7/9)
Wyoming Public Radio:
The Mountain West Is Seeing The Steepest Fertility Rate Declines In The Country
In the past two decades, Mountain West states have seen the sharpest declines in the rates that women are having babies. Fertility rates are declining nationwide as families decide to have children later or not at all. But Utah, Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Colorado, Idaho and Wyoming all ranked in the top ten for drops between 2005 and 2023, according to a recent Lending Tree analysis of federal data. (Merzbach, 7/9)
News from Minnesota, Maryland, California, and New Jersey —
CBS News:
Twin Cities Addiction Center Hopes To Remove Barriers To Treatment Through Free Program
For Minnesotans suffering from chemical addiction, there are barriers to treatment. ... An estimated 290,000 adults in Minnesota are in need of substance use disorder treatment. Barriers include cost, lack of insurance, waitlists and co-occurring disorders. Only 18% of substance use programs and 9% of mental health programs are equipped to properly treat both. (James, 7/9)
CBS News:
Baltimore Residents Impacted By Opioid Overdoses Give Input On Tackling City's Crisis
Baltimore City won millions in settlements and awards after taking on pharmaceutical companies for their role in the opioid crisis. Now, the Mayor's Office of Overdose Response is looking for input from neighbors who have been affected by this crisis on how to put those funds to use and reduce overdose deaths. Dozens of residents joined city leaders on Wednesday at Cherry Hill Elementary/Middle School to discuss the Overdose Strategic Plan that was released last week. (Foreback, 7/9)
The New York Times:
Life Expectancy In California Has Not Rebounded After Covid
If the nation’s largest state is any gauge, American life expectancy in the post-Covid era has not bounced back. A new analysis published on Wednesday in the medical journal JAMA found that life expectancy in California not only decreased sharply in the peak pandemic years of 2020 and 2021, it remained lower in 2024 than it was in 2019, primarily as a result of causes other than Covid. (Baumgaertner Nunn, 7/9)
NBC News:
N.J. Woman Hospitalized With Liver Damage From Turmeric Supplement After Seeing NBC News Report
Katie Mohan started taking daily turmeric pills in March after seeing a doctor on Instagram tout its benefits for inflammation and joint pain relief. A few weeks later, the 57-year-old started having stomach pain, nausea and fatigue. “I just did not feel well generally,” she said. “I also noticed that despite drinking a lot of water every day, that my urine was darker.” Mohan didn’t connect her symptoms to the herbal pills. Not until she saw an NBC News report in May on the growing rates of liver damage from herbal supplements. (Kopf and Ikeda, 7/9)
