Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Ohio Abortion-Rights Group Sues Over 'Blatant Inaccuracies' In Ballot Text
Stateline: Abortion Rights Amendment Petition Writers Sue Ohio Ballot Board For 'Deceptive' Summary
Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights announced Monday afternoon that it plans to file a lawsuit Monday asking the Ohio Supreme Court either to order the ballot board to use the full text of the amendment on ballots this November, or to “correct blatant inaccuracies.” “The summary that was adopted by the Ballot Board is intentionally misleading and fails to meet the standards required by Ohio law,” said OURR’s Lauren Blauvelt in a statement announcing the move. (Tebben, 8/28)
The Detroit News: Whitmer Set To Seek End Of Abortion Waiting Period, Other Abortion Regulations
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Wednesday is expected to endorse legislative measures seeking to undo current Michigan regulations on abortion, including the elimination of waiting periods ahead of an abortion, proposed moves that drew quick opposition from a key anti-abortion group. Michigan's 24-hour waiting period, part of the state's informed consent law, requires a woman to attest she has reviewed various educational materials and fetal development illustrations at least 24 hours before having an abortion. Whitmer and abortion rights advocates on Monday called it "medically unnecessary" and one of several areas considered to inhibit access to abortion. (LeBlanc, 8/28)
The Guardian: Texas Carves Out Narrow Exception To Abortion Ban In New Republican Strategy
A Texas law about to take effect on Friday carves out exceptions to the state’s abortion ban. In June, the Republican governor, Greg Abbott, quietly signed HB 3058, allowing doctors to provide abortion care when a patient’s water breaks too early for the fetus to survive, or when a patient is suffering from an ectopic pregnancy. (Sasani, 8/28)
The 19th: Kentucky Governor's Race: How Abortion Is Shaping Cameron, Beshear's Campaigns
“Only one candidate stopped abortion in Kentucky: Daniel Cameron,” boasts a September 2022 ad from his campaign for governor. For the current attorney general and now Republican gubernatorial nominee, it’s a central issue in his run. It is for abortion rights advocates, too. (Panetta, 8/28)
Axios: Telehealth Abortions On Rise In Colorado After Dobbs Decision
Colorado is a leading provider nationwide of abortions through telehealth clinics — a status that is only expected to increase in future years. The future of telehealth abortions is at risk after a recent federal appeals court ruling limiting access to the abortion pill mifepristone, which may pave the way for a Supreme Court showdown. (Frank, 8/28)
KFF Health News: Californians Headed To HBCUs In The South Prepare For College Under Abortion Bans
When I’laysia Vital got accepted to Texas Southern University, a historically Black university in Houston, she immediately began daydreaming about the sense of freedom that would come with living on her own, and the sense of belonging she would feel studying in a thriving Black community. Then, a nurse at her high school’s health clinic in Oakland, California, explained the legal landscape of her new four-year home in Texas — where abortion is now fully banned. (Dembosky, 8/29)
