Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Judge Halts Enforcement Of South Carolina's 6-Week Abortion Ban
The State: Judge Blocks SC 6-Week Abortion Ban, Punts To Supreme Court
South Carolina’s new six-week abortion ban is on hold, after a judge on Friday blocked the law from being enforced, sending the legal challenge back to the state Supreme Court to decide for the second time whether the ban is constitutional. Circuit Court Judge Clifton Newman made the decision Friday from the bench at the Richland County Courthouse. Later Friday, Gov. Henry McMaster tweeted that his lawyers filed an emergency motion, requesting the S.C. Supreme Court to “resolve this issue quickly.” The high court will now decide whether it takes the case. (Bustos, 5/26)
In other reproductive health news —
AP: Doctor's Supporters, Hospital At Odds With Indiana Penalty For Talking About 10-Year-Old's Abortion
Supporters of an Indianapolis doctor voiced frustration Friday with the Indiana medical board’s decision that she violated patient privacy laws when she talked with a newspaper reporter about providing an abortion to a 10-year-old Ohio rape victim. ... Some of Bernard’s colleagues criticized the Medical Licensing Board’s vote and the state attorney general’s pursuit of disciplinary action against her as trying to intimidate doctors in Indiana, where the Republican-dominated Legislature enacted an abortion ban last year that courts have put on hold. (Davies, 5/26)
NBC News: Ohio Banned August Elections. Then The GOP Planned One That Could Help Preserve An Abortion Ban
Earlier this year, Ohio Republicans enacted a law that effectively scrubbed August special elections from the state’s calendar, calling them overly expensive, low turnout endeavors that weren't worth the trouble. But then, just earlier this month, Ohio state legislative Republicans went ahead and scheduled an August election this year that could make it harder for abortion-rights supporters to amend the state constitution later. (Edelman, 5/27)
Los Angeles Times: Even In California, Anti-Abortion 'Crisis Pregnancy Centers' Seem To Be Untouchable
At Sierra Pregnancy and Health, Executive Director Cary Wilcox beams with pride holding a plastic model of what will soon be a new mobile clinic thanks to a flood of donations after its “biggest year ever.” Outside the nondescript nonprofit just 20 miles from the California capital, a sign advertises “abortion pill reversal” — a practice involving the hormone progesterone that the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists deems “unethical” and “not supported by science.” (Mays, 5/28)
Politico: This Alabama Health Clinic Is Under Threat. It Doesn’t Provide Abortions
Patients arriving for an appointment at the West Alabama Women’s Center one year ago would brave a gauntlet of chanting protesters, skirt an idling police car, take seats in a crowded waiting room and wait for one of the clinic’s dozen busy staff members to help them terminate a pregnancy. Over the clinic’s nearly 30-year history, visits also included the risk of being shot, bombed or rammed by a vehicle. (Miranda Ollstein, 5/29)
The Texas Tribune: Texas Lawmakers Add Support For College Students With Kids
Texas is adjusting to a near-total ban on abortion after the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson last year struck down Roe v. Wade, eliminating the constitutional protection for abortion and allowing states to set their own laws regulating the procedure. Texas lawmakers on both sides of the aisle recognized that the number of pregnant and parenting students will likely increase in the state. This legislative session, lawmakers passed multiple bills that would provide more support to students with children as well as codifying their rights in state law to ensure all colleges and universities are set up to meet their needs. Gov. Greg Abbott has already signed one bill into law. (McGee, 5/30)
Also —
USA Today: In Abortion Pill Battle, Mifepristone Patients Come To Its Defense
Amid the legal saga, people who’ve had medication abortions told USA TODAY the ability to choose mifepristone felt life-saving and gave them a sense of flexibility and control over their abortion experiences. (5/27)
The Hill: Poll: Most Don’t Trust Supreme Court To Decide Reproductive Health Cases
Most respondents in a new poll said they don’t trust the Supreme Court to decide cases related to reproductive and sexual health. Only 37 percent of adults said they trust the court “a lot” or “somewhat” to make the right decision on reproductive and sexual health, according to the poll released Friday by KFF. The results come amid an ongoing lawsuit that seeks to undo federal approval of the common medication abortion pill mifepristone, and almost a year after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. (Weixel, 5/26)
