Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
In Progressive States, Abortion Foes Make The Fight About Money Instead Of Morality
Politico: Oregon’s Unlikely Abortion Fight Hinges On Taxes
Abortion foes in Oregon are trying a new approach to advance their cause in one of the most progressive states in the country — making it about money, not morality. They’re relying on anti-tax sentiment to win support for a Nov. 6 ballot initiative that would ban the vast majority of public funding for the procedure, rather than the making it a referendum on the procedure itself as they have in more conservative states like Texas. (Colliver, 10/6)
The Associated Press: Abortion Rights Group Seeks Rehearing On Louisiana Law
A group that supports abortion rights wants a federal appeals court to revisit its split decision upholding a Louisiana law that requires abortion providers to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals. The Center for Reproductive Rights asked in documents filed Friday that the full 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rehear the case. A panel of judges on the appellate court, in a split 2-1 decision last month, upheld the law. (Johnson, 10/6)
And a look at the fight over fetal tissue research —
Kaiser Health News: The Feds’ Termination Of A Tiny Contract Inflames Bitter Fight Over Fetal Tissue
Federal health officials announced late last month they had terminated their contract with a company that supplies human fetal tissue for medical research and were checking that similar contracts, as well as studies conducted with that tissue, comply with federal law. The seemingly innocuous release about a tiny government contract, which came out as Americans focused on Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court, belied the big stakes and contentious issue behind it. Government officials are considering pulling federal funding for a decades-old form of research that has yielded a number of medical advances, including the polio vaccine. (Huetteman, 10/8)
