Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Advocates, Doctors See Prescription Medication As Way To Combat Rural And Underserved Abortion Deserts
CQ: New Front In The Abortion Wars Over Procedures Using Medication
Hawaii is one of the more progressive states in the country on abortion rights. There are no mandatory waiting periods, no parental notification requirements, and the state’s Medicaid program covers abortion for low-income women. But federal restrictions can still complicate access for women there. One of its islands, Kauai, has more than 72,000 residents and several hospitals, but no abortion providers, in part because the hospital administrators either object to the procedure or want to avoid the administrative hassles. (Raman, 3/4)
Politico Pro: Republicans Pound Abortion ‘Infanticide’ Message
Republicans’ amped-up focus on so-called late term abortions has brought new energy to the issue for their conservative base — forcing Democrats to respond to rhetoric about infanticide. The GOP plans to keep at the message through the 2020 election, even if they lose the battle in Congress to pass a “Born-Alive Abortion Survivors” bill, H.R. 962 (116), that abortion-rights advocates warn could add new pain to already wrenching medical decisions. (Ollstein, 3/1)
Dallas Morning News: ‘If The Heartbeat Is Detected, The Baby Is Protected’: Anti-Abortion Bill Gains Momentum In Texas
Texas has several laws that women seeking abortions have to navigate, including a 24-hour waiting period between a mandatory ultrasound and the procedure. One lawmaker has filed a bill to add another restriction — banning abortion after a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can be as early as six weeks, before a woman may realize she’s pregnant. Republican Rep. Briscoe Cain’s “Texas heartbeat bill,” HB 1500, would ban abortion after heartbeat detection except in the case of medical emergencies. Current law allows abortion up to 20 weeks. (Stone, 3/1)
Cleveland Plain Dealer: Are Frozen Embryos 'Living Persons’? Couple In UH Fertility Case Seeks Appellate Court Ruling Based On Modern Science
A Broadview Heights couple who lost three frozen embryos a year ago after a freezer malfunction at University Hospitals’ Ahuja Medical Center, are hoping those evolving opinions on the topic will help to convince the 8th Ohio District Court of Appeals that their embryos were living persons, not pieces of property. Wendy and Rick Penniman were among the more than 900 families who lost 4,000 eggs and embryos March 3-4 after a sudden rise in temperature in a storage freezer at the fertility clinic in Beachwood. (McCarty, 3/3)
