Doctors Say Texas’ Emergency Abortion Rules Will Only Increase Confusion
During a public hearing Monday, physicians and lawyers said the medical board's rules don't answer critical questions such as “how close to death a patient needs to be” before a doctor can intervene.
Houston Chronicle:
Doctors Criticize Texas Medical Board Emergency Abortion Rules
The Texas Medical Board’s attempt to clarify when doctors can legally perform emergency abortions falls short and could make working under the state’s near-total ban even worse, dozens of doctors, lawyers and patients warned during a public hearing Monday. The proposed rules, which the board unveiled in March, do not lay out a list of conditions or situations that warrant an emergency abortion. (Goldenstein, 5/20)
The Texas Tribune:
Ted Cruz Files Bill To Protect IVF
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas is leading a charge to protect access to in vitro fertilization as conservative states scramble to figure out where IVF fits in the new anti-abortion legal landscape. On Monday, Cruz and Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama, both conservative, anti-abortion Republicans, filed the IVF Protection Act, which would make states ineligible to receive Medicaid funding if they ban IVF. (Klibanoff, 5/20)
NPR:
'Abortion Abolitionists' Want To Charge Patients With Murder And Ban IVF
As some Republicans try to moderate their messaging on abortion over concerns about voter backlash this November, some activists are trying to go much further. Outside a fertility clinic in Charlotte, N.C., last month, dozens of protestors lined both sides of the street, as some shouted toward the closed front door. ... The protest was organized by a group of activists who describe themselves as abortion abolitionists, who recently spent a long weekend in Charlotte meeting and strategizing. (McCammon, 5/21)
Also —
ABC News:
Nevada Abortion Rights Group Says It Has Enough Signatures On Petition For Ballot Measure
Nevada abortion rights supporters said Monday they have enough signatures on a petition to qualify for a ballot measure that would enshrine abortion rights in the state's constitution. Nevadans for Reproductive Freedom, the organization behind the petition, said it has collected more than 200,000 signatures from voters in all 17 counties, double the 102,362 threshold required to qualify for the November 2024 election. (Kekatos, 5/21)
The Washington Post:
Polls Show Abortion Rights Lead Big In Arizona And Florida
The abortion rights position has won in seven of seven states post-Roe v. Wade. But Arizona and Florida are especially big — as are the margins by which their ballot measures lead. (Blake, 5/20)
KFF Health News:
Watch: Medical Residents Are Increasingly Avoiding Abortion Ban States
On KFF Health News’ “What the Health?,” chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner interviewed Atul Grover of the Association of American Medical Colleges about its recent analysis showing that graduating medical students are avoiding training in states with abortion bans and major restrictions. (Rovner, 5/21)
WBEZ:
Planned Parenthood In Illinois Offers Abortion Pills Via App
Looking to expand access to medication abortion even further in Illinois, Planned Parenthood is allowing people to request access to the drugs without seeing a doctor. Patients who are up to 10 weeks pregnant can fill out screening questions on the Planned Parenthood Direct app any time of the day and provide an Illinois address where their medication abortion pills mifepristone and misoprostol would be mailed if they qualify. (Schorsch, 5/21)
