Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Ohio, Wisconsin Lawmakers Move To Strip Planned Parenthood Of State And Federal Money
Northeast Ohio Media Group: Ohio Senate Plans To Block State, Federal Funds From Planned Parenthood
Ohio Senate President Keith Faber said Wednesday the Senate will quickly move legislation to prevent state and federal funding from being used for services at Planned Parenthood. Faber, a Celina Republican, said legislation is directly tied to hidden-camera footage shot by anti-abortion activists that purported to show the health organization sells body parts from aborted fetuses. Planned Parenthood has said the videos were deceptively edited and the organization's affiliates may accept donations to cover abortion costs but do not sell fetus parts. (Borchardt, 9/23)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Assembly To Consider Stripping Planned Parenthood Of More Funding
The state Assembly on Thursday will consider a measure to strip Planned Parenthood of more government funding. The debate comes as Republicans who control the Legislature struggle over separate legislation that would ban research using fetal tissue from abortions. Democrats have argued the effort to block federal money from going to Planned Parenthood in Wisconsin would cause people to lose access to birth control and screenings for sexually transmitted diseases. Republicans deny that, saying the money will instead flow to other providers. They say public money shouldn't go to the state's largest abortion provider for any purpose. (Marley, 9/24)
The Texas Tribune: 2 State Women's Health Programs To Consolidate In July
Four years after they first reconfigured state-subsidized health services for low-income women, Texas health officials are at it again as they consider how to consolidate two of the state’s main women’s health programs. Following a directive from the Legislature, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission announced Wednesday that it would combine two women’s health programs to create the “Healthy Texas Women” program on July 1. The new initiative will be a consolidation of the Texas Women’s Health Program and the Expanded Primary Health Care Program, which provide health screenings and contraception to poor women in the state. (Ura, 9/23)
Dallas Morning News: State To Offer Free Birth Control To Low-Income Teenagers
Large numbers of poor teenagers will be able for the first time to get free birth control from the state as officials aim to reduce Texas’ high teen pregnancy rate, state health agencies announced Wednesday. By consolidating programs that provide family planning, reproductive health care and cancer screenings, leaders hope to expand low-income teens’ access to another 5,000 health providers in the new Healthy Texas Women program, Health and Human Services Commission officials said. (Martin, 9/24)
Dallas Morning News: Groups Target 5 Dallas ZIP Codes With “Alarming” Teen Birth Rates
While the teen pregnancy rate has steadily dropped in the U.S., Dallas has pockets that stubbornly defy the trend. In parts of southern Dallas, 1 of every 9 girls has a baby. Those babies are born to girls and boys who haven’t finished high school and aren’t ready for careers, let alone raising a family. A team of researchers and nonprofits vows to tackle the grim problem, so teens can decide to better their lives and wait to have babies. (Hacker, 9/23)
