Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Abortion Access In Question In Several State Elections
The Hill: Elections For Top Office Could Impact Abortion Access In These States
In a handful of races, the outcome in November could decide whether abortion remains legal in the state by shifting the balance of power in state governments. (Bruce, 10/24)
KHN: An Abortion Rights Question On The California Ballot Revives The Debate Over ‘Viability’
As California voters decide whether to amend their state constitution to explicitly protect abortion rights, lawmakers still do not agree on whether the amendment would enshrine those rights, which by state law allow abortion up to 24 weeks, or expand them, permitting abortions at any point in pregnancy, for any reason. During the legislative debate over the amendment, dubbed Proposition 1 on the November ballot, there were several awkward moments after a question from Republicans stumped Democrats — most notably when Assembly member Kevin Kiley (R-Rocklin) posed it point-blank before the final vote in June. “California law generally bars the performance of an abortion past the point of fetal viability,” he said. “Would this constitutional amendment change that?” (Dembosky, 10/25)
AP: Judge Hears Testimony In Bid To Strike Georgia Abortion Law
Georgia’s ban on abortion as early as six weeks into pregnancy is causing distress among women denied the procedure and confusion among doctors, an abortion provider testified Monday on the first day of a trial to determine whether the state can continue enforcing the restriction. (Thanawala, 10/24)
AP: Abortion Ruling Means More And Riskier Births In Mississippi
In Mississippi, where health officials expect 5,000 more births each year as a result of the Supreme Court ruling upending abortion rights, children are more likely to die before their first birthday than in any other state. Mississippi has the nation’s highest fetal mortality rate, highest infant mortality rate, highest pre-term birth rate and is among the worst states for maternal mortality. Black women are nearly three times more likely to die due to childbirth than white women in Mississippi. (Goldberg, 10/24)
North Carolina Health News: Some With Disabilities Fear Risky Pregnancies
In her regular life, Asheville resident Tiffany Grzankowski lives with a lot of pain. She has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, a cluster of genetic disorders that impacts connective tissue. For Grzankowski, in addition to chronic pain, EDS means her blood pressure and heart rate rise and fall without much warning, she breaks bones easily, and she feels nauseated often due to a paralyzed stomach. All those symptoms worsened when she became pregnant. (Donnelly-DeRoven, 10/25)
Also —
Axios: The Road To Making Birth Control Pills Over-The-Counter In The U.S.
Reproductive health advocates and Democratic lawmakers are intensifying calls for the Food and Drug Administration to make contraceptives available without a prescription ahead of a closely watched advisory panel meeting next month. (Gonzalez, 10/25)
