Huge Health Fair In St. Louis Offering Free Care To Uninsured, Underinsured

St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Mega Clinic Will Provide Free Health Services Over Four Days At America’s Center In St. Louis
America’s Center downtown will be turned into a massive health clinic next week, offering free medical, vision and dental care to whoever needs it, including those without insurance. More than 1,800 health care professionals and volunteers will be able to care for up to 1,200 people a day, starting at 7 a.m. Monday through Thursday, organizers say. Care will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis, and the clinic will close each day when capacity is reached. (Munz, 5/2)

Colorado Public Radio: Most Controversial Provision Cut From Colorado Transgender Rights Bill — And More Changes Are Still Likely 
The Colorado Senate could soon vote on a Democratic bill aimed at increasing protections for transgender Coloradans, however the measure faces concerns from both members of the LGTBQ community and the governor. (Birkeland, 5/2)

San Francisco Chronicle: Breast Cancer Memorial In Golden Gate Park First Of Its Kind In Nation
Vanessa Onsurez of Santa Cruz is fatigued and in pain from treatment for metastatic breast cancer, but she wasn’t going to miss the opening of the first permanent memorial in the country dedicated to lives lost to the disease. So Sunday morning, she was sitting cross legged on cold concrete in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, with no place she would rather be than the Bay Area Young Survivors Breast Cancer Memorial Garden, a $1 million monument dedicated to all people who have died of breast cancer with an emphasis on those who were under age 45 when diagnosed with the disease. (Whiting, 5/4)

In reproductive health news from across the U.S. —

The Hill: Planned Parenthood Chapters Sue Over Ten Pregnancy Prevention Program Restrictions
Planned Parenthood chapters across several states have filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration challenging new terms that would hinder their continued participation in a long-standing program aimed at preventing teenage pregnancy. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) notified recipients of national Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program (TPPP) funds on March 31 that to continue in the program they must show they are in “alignment with current Presidential Executive Orders,” according to the lawsuit. (Crisp, 5/2)

The Boston Globe: Trump Wants More Babies. But Mass. Cost Of Living Holds Women Back.
Colleen Nguyen always thought she would have two children. Then she had her first. She loves her son, Zach, a giggly 5-year-old with a penchant for sea creatures and Hot Wheels, and would love to give him a sibling. But the price tag of parenthood has far exceeded her expectations. These days, Zach’s nursery school and day care eat up anywhere from about $2,000 to $2,200 every month — not far from what she and her husband pay for the rent on their two-bedroom in Newton. (Gerber, 5/5)

KFF Health News: Alabama Can’t Prosecute Groups Helping Patients Get Abortions Elsewhere, Judge Rules
Reproductive rights groups in Alabama wasted no time resuming their work after a federal judge ruled in early April that the state’s attorney general can’t prosecute — or threaten to prosecute — people or organizations who help Alabama residents seek an abortion by traveling to another state. One of the plaintiffs, the reproductive justice nonprofit Yellowhammer Fund, wasted no time in returning to one of its core missions: to provide financial support to traveling patients. (Hawkins, 5/5)

The Washington Post: More Babies Are Being Admitted To NICUs 
Nearly 10 percent of infants were admitted to a neonatal intensive care unit in the United States in 2023, according to a report from the National Center for Health Statistics, a 13 percent increase from admissions in 2016.The report drew on birth certificate data from the National Vital Statistics System, which includes detailed demographic and health information on mothers and infants for all U.S. births each year. (McMahan, 5/5)