Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Judge Pauses Wyoming Abortion Ban On State Constitutional Grounds
AP: Abortion To Remain Legal In Wyoming While Lawsuit Proceeds
Abortion will remain legal in Wyoming while a lawsuit that contests a ban on the procedure in nearly all cases moves ahead, a judge ruled Wednesday. The lawsuit will likely succeed because the ban appears to violate the state constitution and is vague, Teton County District Judge Melissa Owens, in Jackson, wrote in granting the preliminary injunction. (Gruver, 8/10)
State abortion bans are difficult to keep track of —
The New York Times: Where Abortion Has Flipped From Illegal To Legal And Back Again
For abortion providers and patients, this has meant navigating a situation in which abortion may be allowed one day and banned the next. Providers have canceled procedures midday or told patients to wait on standby in the event that abortion becomes temporarily legal again. The legal back and forth has also frustrated opponents of abortion who saw the Dobbs decision as having settled the question of whether states can prohibit the procedure. (McCann, 8/11)
The Hill: Warren Launches Investigation Into State Abortion Bans
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) has launched an investigation into how state abortion bans have affected Americans’ access to health care for pregnancies, reproductive and nonreproductive care. In her announcement, Warren said her investigation was spurred by reports of “shocking stories from women in states that have enacted radical abortion bans and criminalized health care.” (Choi, 8/10)
In abortion updates from Texas and Indiana —
Houston Chronicle: Texas Supreme Court Reconsiders Rule Allowing Minors To Get An Abortion Without Parental Consent
A spokeswoman for the high court explained that the justices believe the new law, and a landmark June ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court overturning federal protections on abortion, have “raised questions about whether the parental-notification rules are still consistent with Texas law.” (Goldenstein, 8/10)
Dallas Morning News: Dallas Approves Limits On City Resources Used To Investigate Abortions
The Dallas City Council on Wednesday approved changing city policies to limit government resources used to investigate abortions, following several other Texas cities declaring support for reproductive care rights despite the state’s ban on abortion under almost all circumstances. (Bailey Jr., 8/10)
South Bend Tribune: After Years Of Battling, South Bend's Only Abortion Clinic Forced Into Closing Next Month
Nearly five years after Whole Woman's Health Alliance first sought to open a South Bend clinic, the abortion provider will close next month after Indiana legislators passed a ban on almost all abortions starting Sept. 15. “Really the decision was made for us," Midwest Advocacy Director Sharon Lau said Tuesday. "It's not surprising. We will be continuing to see patients up until the ban law goes into effect, and after that time, we will have to close the clinic.” (Smith, 8/11)
NPR: Their Mentor Was Attacked. Now Young OB-GYNs May Leave Indiana
"Watching what [Dr. Bernard] went through was scary," said Dr. Beatrice Soderholm, a fourth year OB-GYN resident and one of Bernard's mentees. "I think that was part of the point for those who were putting her through that. [It] was to scare other people out of doing the work that she does." (Yousry, 8/10)
From Utah, Louisiana, and the U.S. territory of Guam —
Salt Lake Tribune: Salt Lake County Council Member Tells Kamala Harris Fetuses Are Not Part Of Women’s Bodies
Salt Lake County Council member Dave Alvord says fetuses are not part of a mother’s body because the umbilical cord and placenta do not connect directly to the woman. That isn’t true, but Alvord is standing by his comments in the wake of the social media pile-on he’s faced after airing those views on Twitter, in response to a tweet by Vice President Kamala Harris. (Apgar, 8/10)
NPR: Louisiana's Abortion Ban Has Doctors Worried About Patients — And Their Own Careers
Louisiana's abortion ban makes an exception if the fetus would not survive birth or to save a patient's life. But doctors say they fear that vague wording puts their patients and careers at risk. (Westwood, 8/10)
NBC News: In Guam, The Nearest Domestic Abortion Clinic Is 4,000 Miles Away. How Will Roe’s Reversal Change The U.S. Territory?
The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, which had made abortion a constitutionally protected right, could have a chilling effect on reproductive rights in Guam. Advocates say women have already been living under a de facto ban in the largely Catholic U.S. Pacific Island territory and fear it could get more restrictive. No surgical abortion has been performed on the island since 2018, when the last doctor trained to provide the procedure retired, according to the ACLU and the Bureau of Women’s Affairs. (Wang, 8/10)
In related news about reproductive health —
Roll Call: Medical Schools, Students Review Training Amid Abortion Bans
Ghazaleh Moayedi credits many of her strengths as a Texas-based obstetrician-gynecologist to training related to abortion. Outpatient abortion training builds bedside manner and teaches practical technical skills outside of a hospital, she says. (Raman, 8/10)
The Washington Post: How Being Adopted Shapes People's Thoughts On Abortion
Conversations about abortion are often connected to adoption. In oral arguments for Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization last year, Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett suggested that adoption may render abortion irrelevant. And in his majority opinion on the case, Supreme Court Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote: “A woman who puts her newborn up for adoption today has little reason to fear that the baby will not find a suitable home.” (McCormack, 8/10)
AP: EXPLAINER: Online Privacy In A Post-Roe World
The case of a Nebraska woman charged with helping her teenage daughter end her pregnancy after investigators obtained Facebook messages between the two has raised fresh concerns about data privacy in the post-Roe world. Since before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June, Big Tech companies that collect personal details of their users have faced new calls to limit that tracking and surveillance amid fears that law enforcement or vigilantes could use those data troves against people seeking abortions or those who try to help them. (8/11)
