Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
More Maternity Units Closing Amid Staff Shortages And Rising Costs
NBC News: As 3 Alabama Hospitals Prepare To Close Maternity Units, Fears Rise
By the end of the month, two Alabama hospitals will stop delivering babies. A third will follow suit a few weeks later. That will leave two counties — Shelby and Monroe — without any birthing hospitals, and strip a predominantly Black neighborhood in Birmingham of a sought-after maternity unit. After that, pregnant women in Shelby County will have to travel at least 17 miles farther to reach a hospital with an OB-GYN. And because the county, one of Alabama’s largest, is bordered by another whose hospital also lacks an obstetrics unit, some of those residents are also losing the closest place they could go to deliver their babies. (Harris, 10/15)
Modern Healthcare: Maternity Units Risk Closure Amid Payment, Staffing Problems
A growing number of hospitals have been forced to cut inpatient maternity services as costs rise and staffing challenges persist. Inpatient maternity care is an expensive operation, requiring specialized clinicians and equipment ready to go 24 hours a day. And payer reimbursements often fall short, clinicians say. (Hudson, 10/13)
In updates on abortion —
Source New Mexico: Legislators In 49 States Ask SCOTUS To Preserve Access To Abortion Pill
A group of more than 600 Democratic legislators from 49 states have signed an amicus brief to the U.S. Supreme Court urging the justices to overturn an appellate court decision that would roll back access to mifepristone, one of two drugs used to safely terminate early pregnancies and treat miscarriages. The amicus brief, also called a “friend of the court” brief, was organized by State Innovation Exchange’s Reproductive Freedom Leadership Council and assembled over the past week, said Jennifer Driver, the group’s senior director of reproductive rights. Driver said State Innovation Exchange, also known as SiX, provides tools and resources for state legislators to advocate for progressive public policies after being elected to office. (Moseley-Morris, 10/16)
The Washington Post: Abortion Bans Complicate Medical Training, Risk Worsening OB/GYN Shortages
Because of new restrictions on abortion, a generation of doctors will be ill-equipped to meet their patients’ needs because of insufficient gynecological training, experts warn. (Hutchinson, 10/13)
In election news —
The Guardian: Tennessee’s Abortion Ban Put Her At Risk – Now She’s Running For Office To Change The Law
After 28-year-old Allie Phillips had to leave the state in order to get an abortion for a pregnancy that could endanger her life, she began to envision a law that helps families in her situation. (Sherman, 10/16)
The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer: Ohio ‘Heartbeat’ Law: Anti-Abortion Groups That Backed It Now Keeping Distance Ahead Of Nov. 7
Ohio Republicans and abortion opponents have spent years fighting for Ohio’s “heartbeat” law banning abortions as early as six weeks into pregnancy with no exceptions for rape or incest. But now that they’re trying to convince voters to reject an abortion-rights amendment Nov. 7, they’ve begun to act like it doesn’t exist. (Tobias and Hancock, 10/14)
The New York Times: How Kari Lake’s Tactical Retreat On Abortion Could Point The Way For The GOP
Kari Lake campaigned for governor of Arizona last year as a fierce ally of former President Donald J. Trump who was in lock step with her party’s right-wing base, calling abortion the “ultimate sin” and supporting the state’s Civil War-era restrictions on the procedure. This week, she made a remarkable shift on the issue as she opened her bid for the U.S. Senate: She declared her opposition to a federal ban. (Bender, 10/14)
