Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
In Wake Of Trump's 16-Week Abortion Ban Hint, 48% Say They'd Support It
The Hill: 48 Percent In New Poll Say They Would Support 16-Week Abortion Ban
Nearly half of Americans in a new poll said they would back a national 16-week abortion ban after The New York Times reported former President Trump, the front-runner for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, privately expressed support for the measure. The Economist/YouGov new poll found 48 percent of respondents would support a national ban on abortions after 16 weeks of pregnancy. (Sforza, 2/22)
The New York Times: Abortion Shield Laws: A New War Between The States
Behind an unmarked door in a boxy brick building outside Boston, a quiet rebellion is taking place. Here, in a 7-by-12-foot room, abortion is being made available to thousands of women in states where it is illegal. ... They are obtaining abortion pills prescribed by licensed Massachusetts providers, packaged in the little room and mailed from a nearby post office, arriving days later in Texas, Missouri and other states where abortion is largely outlawed. (Belluck, 2/22)
AP: GOP Lawmakers Try To Thwart Abortion Rights Ballot Initiative In South Dakota
South Dakota’s Republican-led Legislature is trying to thwart a proposed ballot initiative that would enable voters to protect abortion rights in the state constitution. The initiative’s leader says the GOP efforts threaten the state’s tradition of direct democracy. ... If voters approve it, the three-paragraph addition to the South Dakota Constitution would ban the state from regulating abortion in the first trimester and allow regulations for the second trimester “only in ways that are reasonably related to the physical health of the pregnant woman.” (Dura, 2/22)
On contraception coverage —
Roll Call: Democrats Ask Insurers To Meet Contraceptive Coverage Mandate
The House Democratic Women’s Caucus has asked the biggest insurance association to urge insurers to comply with contraceptive coverage requirements and Biden administration guidance issued in January, according to a letter shared first with CQ Roll Call. (Raman, 2/22)
Stat: Midwife-Assisted Home Births Are On The Rise. High-Risk Deliveries Are Too
Kay Kay Lineweaver’s first birthing experience in 2021 didn’t go as planned. Her baby was breech and the doctor wouldn’t allow her to try to give birth vaginally, so she ended up with an unwanted cesarean section. “[The obstetrician] wouldn’t even give me the option,” she recalled later in a podcast called “Healing Trauma Mamas.” Lineweaver said she felt like she “didn’t have control” and that the birth process was “a nightmare.” (Cohen, 2/23)
St. Louis Public Radio: Pritzker Wants To Lower Black Maternal Deaths In Illinois
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker wants to spend more than $20 million of his proposed $53 billion budget to help decrease the numbers of Black women who die during pregnancy or shortly after giving birth. Pritzker, a Democrat, presented the plan Wednesday as part of his budget plan for the fiscal year that begins in July. The budget includes $4.4 million to study the state’s maternal mortality rate and create a plan to help pregnant women and new mothers. (Fentem, 2/22)
KFF Health News: Pregnancy Care Was Always Lacking In Jails. It Could Get Worse
It was about midnight in June 2022 when police officers showed up at Angela Collier’s door and told her that someone anonymously requested a welfare check because they thought she might have had a miscarriage.Standing in front of the concrete steps of her home in Midway, Texas, Collier, initially barefoot and wearing a baggy gray T-shirt, told officers she planned to see a doctor in the morning because she had been bleeding. ... Instead of taking her to get medical care, they handcuffed and arrested her. (Rayasam, 2/23)
