Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Ballot Measure On Abortion Stirs Passions In Michigan
The Guardian: ‘This Is A Blueprint’: Abortion Rights Ballot Proposal Takes Off In Michigan
The campaign to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution was already under way here even before Roe fell, and it has become an embittered battle in Michigan – to keep a 90-year-old abortion ban off the books. Campaigners fear that ban would criminalise doctors and pregnant people and deny essential medical care, such as miscarriage medication, now that the constitutional right to abortion no longer exists in the US. (Noor, 10/31)
Politico: Michigan Abortion-Rights Battle Rakes In Cash Ahead Of Referendum
Roughly $57 million poured into Michigan’s high stakes contest for abortion rights during the last quarter, more money than the races for governor, attorney general and secretary of state combined. The campaign supporting the ballot measure, which would codify a right to an abortion in the state constitution, amassed more than $40 million between July and October, according to filings with the Secretary of State’s office. Reproductive Freedom for All, the committee leading the fight, received the bulk of its donations from national progressive advocacy groups, such as the American Civil Liberties Union, Planned Parenthood, NARAL, Open Society Foundation and the Sixteen Thirty Fund. (Ollstein, 10/31)
The Guardian: How Michigan’s Abortion Referendum Could Decide Key Congressional Race
Democratic candidate Elissa Slotkin says abortion is a top issues in the state and fear of a ban will motivate voters to re-elect her: ‘I’ve never seen anything like it.’ (Noor, 11/1)
AP: Kentucky Voters Asked Whether There's A Right To An Abortion
Kentucky voters are being asked to decide whether to amend the state constitution to declare outright that it doesn’t protect the right to an abortion. The question reads: “To protect human life, nothing in this Constitution shall be construed to secure or protect a right to abortion or require the funding of abortion.” (Schreiner, 11/1)
USA Today: Abortion Policy Is Major Issue In Midterms. Where Are Progressive Men?
Many men are, of course, affected by pregnancy, with some becoming unwilling fathers forced to pay for a child's care and others seeing their priorities shift as a result of unplanned fatherhood. But for some male voters, there’s a lack of understanding about what abortion and the right to it entails or a feeling of detachment about what often is labeled a women’s issue, regardless of their political affiliation, activists said. (Keveney, 11/1)
Mississippi Public Broadcasting: Staying Pink: Jackson Women’s Health Organization Is Closed, But 1 Group Continues The Fight
Stay Pink's mission is to keep abortion rights at the front of mind, especially as election day comes closer. Co-creator John Osborne hopes people driving by will see them and ask themselves what they can do to restore abortion rights. (Miller, 10/31)
CalMatters: Would Prop. 1 Allow Abortions After Fetal Viability? Legal Experts Say No
Proposition 1, the Nov. 8 ballot measure that would create an explicit protection for “reproductive freedom” in the California Constitution, is not written to expand abortion access into the final months of pregnancy and, despite warnings from opponents, legal experts say that is a highly unlikely outcome if it passes. The simple yet sweeping language of the measure — “the state shall not deny or interfere with an individual’s reproductive freedom in their most intimate decisions” — has been a source of contention, even among some supporters of abortion rights, since it was introduced this summer. (Koseff, 10/31)
Houston Chronicle: O'Rourke Releases New Ad Targeting Abbott On Abortion
Going into the final week of early voting, Democrat Beto O’Rourke is once again trying to make the case that Gov. Greg Abbott went too far when he signed an abortion ban in Texas that has almost no exceptions. In a 60-second ad that will start later today, O’Rourke features Amanda and Josh Zurawski of Austin who explain that when she was 18 weeks pregnant, she had complications that led to a miscarriage. But because of the state’s abortion laws, Amanda said doctors told her they couldn’t do anything to help her until the miscarriage happened or that her life was at risk. (Wallace, 10/31)
Reuters: Fact Check-Fabricated Jill Biden Quote On Abortion Circulates Online
A fabricated quote attributed to U.S. first lady Jill Biden has been circulating online. The posts claim that she said she would have been fine with her mother’s decision to abort her. A spokesperson for the first lady told Reuters that the quote was not authentic. (10/31)
