Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Gulf Of Mexico May Get Floating Abortion Clinic
Houston Chronicle: A Floating Abortion Clinic? Medical Team Plans To Launch Ship In Gulf Of Mexico, In Federal Waters
A California doctor has a plan to launch a floating reproductive health clinic in the Gulf of Mexico, where care will be regulated by federal -- not state -- law. The plan -- currently in the fundraising stage -- hopes to make surgical abortions, contraception and other reproductive health services available to Gulf Coast patients living in states restricting such services. (Schuetz, 7/9)
AP: Floating Abortion Clinic Proposed In Gulf To Bypass Bans
[Dr. Meg Autry, an obstetrician and gynecologist and a professor at the University of California San Francisco] said their legal team believes there is a swath of federal water where licensed providers could safely and legally provide abortions out of reach of state laws. For women in southern states with abortion bans, going to the coast and boarding a boat may be closer and easier than trying to travel to a state where abortion remains legal, she said. “This is closer and faster access for some people, particularly for working people that live in the southernmost part of these states,” she said. Autry said they are still trying to work out many of the details such as where the boat will launch and how women would get to the ship. (7/10)
On abortion technology and data —
Stat: Abortion Providers Embrace Technology To Prepare For New Flood Of Patients
As abortion clinics shutter across the country, providers in states where abortion is still legal are expecting an influx of patients — and they’re hoping technology can help them manage the deluge. (Ravindranath, 7/11)
CNBC: Why HIPAA Doesn't Always Protect Abortion Information
Legal experts note that search history, text messages, location data, and period-tracker apps could all potentially be used in court and in some cases already have been. (Yang and Feiner, 7/9)
Also —
Bloomberg: Abortion Bans Are Limiting What Some Doctors And Med Students Are Taught
“At the end of the day, we can't train people to provide abortion care if we can't provide abortion care,” said DeShawn Taylor, an obstetrician-gynecologist who is the owner and primary provider at Desert Star Family Planning in Phoenix. (Ceron, 7/10)
KHN: Journalists Explain The Effects Of ‘Dobbs’ Decision And New Insurer Price Transparency Rules
KHN chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner discussed how the Supreme Court’s decision on abortion affects contraception on NPR/WAMU’s “1A” on July 6. ... KHN senior correspondent Julie Appleby discussed insurer price transparency regulations on NPR’s “Weekend Edition Saturday” on July 2. (7/9)
The Atlantic: The Vasectomy Influencers
“I’d like to be part of this massive wave that’s happening now,” Sarah Miller, an abortion provider and family doctor based in Boston, told me. It has long been her personal mission to make vasectomies more accessible and popular, and she sees the current climate as an opportunity. “What did you call me? A ‘vasectomy influencer’? I like that,” she said. As it happens, she’d just gotten an email from a graphic designer offering to help her turn vasectomy into a “mass movement” and “aggressively promote the fact that men should be stepping up and doing this publicly.” (Tiffany, 7/8)
