Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Democrats Want Contraception Rights Vote To Expose GOP Policies
The Hill: Democrats Want To Force Senate GOP To Vote On Contraception
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced Wednesday the Senate will vote next month on legislation to protect women’s access to contraception, setting up a campaign issue for the fall. Democrats expect Republicans to block the bill, just as they have blocked legislation protecting access to in vitro fertilization, which Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) said included “poison pills.” (Bolton, 5/22)
The Texas Tribune: Anti-Abortion Doctor Appointed To Texas Maternity Committee
A leading anti-abortion doctor has been appointed to Texas’ maternal mortality review committee. Dr. Ingrid Skop, an OB/GYN from San Antonio, will be serving in the role designated for a community member representing a rural area. (Klibanoff, 5/22)
Stateline: New Rules Protect Pregnant Workers, But Red States Sue Over Abortion Provisions
Natasha Jackson was four months pregnant when she told her supervisor she was expecting. It was 2008, and Jackson was an account executive at a rental furniture store in Charleston, South Carolina — the only female employee there. “I actually hid my pregnancy as long as I could because I was scared about what could happen,” she said. (Claire Vollers, 5/22)
In other reproductive health news —
North Carolina Health News: Parents Lobby To Raise Awareness About Stillbirth, A ‘Silent Epidemic’
Brittany Day will never forget when she saw the lifeless bodies of her twin daughters, Sophie and Ruby, on a hospital ultrasound in 2017. The day before, she’d felt some erratic movements. She’d taken that as a sign of healthy babies, but she now knows otherwise. (Vespa, 5/22)
Tampa Bay Times: Procreation Vacation: Why The Global IVF Market Is Booming
Khendra Riley was 39. She had just broken up with her fiance. Her ovaries, doctors said, may not be releasing eggs regularly. She’d wanted a baby since she turned 30. It seemed impossible. In vitro fertilization seemed the only option left, but the St. Petersburg flight attendant’s health insurance didn’t cover it. The near $30,000 quotes she got from two Tampa Bay clinics were out of reach. (O'Donnell, 5/22)
NPR: Uterine Fibroids: Benign, Common And Sometimes Debilitating
When Tanika Gray Valbrun was 13 years old, she got her first period at a family function. It was apparent because she was wearing white shorts and because her flow was heavy. That heaviness persisted each time she got her period, along with intense pain.It wasn't until her mid-twenties that Tanika would find out these debilitating periods — and ongoing fertility struggles — were caused by fibroids, benign uterine tumors. But just because they aren't cancerous doesn't mean they can't cause problems. (McCoy, Kwong and Ramirez, 5/22)
Bloomberg: Mapping The Human Ovary, Cell By Cell
Since 2016, a global consortium of researchers have been mapping the cells of the human body. Known as the Human Cell Atlas, the objective is to understand and improve health outcomes, particularly those related to the origins of disease. A recent contribution to the project advances that goal with respect to the ovary. In a paper published in Science Advances in April, a group of University of Michigan scientists describe how they mapped the human ovary at the resolution of a single cell. (Bliss, 5/22)
