Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Republicans Quiz Biden Judicial Nominee Over Abortion Advocacy
The Hill: GOP Senators Grill Biden Judicial Nominee Over Past Abortion Advocacy
Republican senators on Wednesday went after Biden judicial nominee Julie Rikelman over her past work at a leading abortion advocacy organization. Rikelman, who has been nominated to serve on the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston, represented the Mississippi abortion clinic at the center of this year’s Supreme Court case that resulted in the overturning of Roe v. Wade. (Shapero, 9/21)
Reuters: Abortion Rights Lawyer Vows As Judge To Follow U.S. Supreme Court Ruling
The lawyer who represented the Mississippi clinic at the heart of the U.S. Supreme Court case that resulted in the overturning of women's constitutional right to abortion pledged during Senate testimony on Wednesday to follow that ruling despite her past advocacy if she is confirmed to the federal judiciary. Julie Rikelman, nominated by Democratic President Joe Biden to serve on the Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, told the Senate Judiciary Committee in her confirmation hearing in Washington that she would follow the June ruling despite having fought to preserve abortion rights. (Raymond, 9/21)
In other news from Montana, California, Mississippi, and Colorado —
Billings Gazette: Opponents Say 'Born-Alive' Referendum Will Traumatize MT Families
“LR-131 is a piece of propaganda, part of a false narrative created by those who are against individuals and families who want to make health care decisions without interference from the state,” Mitchell said at a press conference at the Capitol in Helena on Wednesday. “The outcomes (that) this initiative claims to exist simply do not happen." In an interview last week, Mitchell said the referendum, if passed, would force doctors to intervene in situations where no amount of action is going to change the outcome for the family. (Michels, 9/21)
KHN: Opponents Of California’s Abortion Rights Measure Mislead On Expense To Taxpayers
California Together, a campaign led by religious and anti-abortion groups, is hoping to persuade voters to reject a ballot measure that would cement the right to abortion in the state’s constitution. The group is warning that taxpayers will be on the hook for an influx of abortion seekers from out of state. Proposition 1 was placed on the ballot by the Democratic-controlled legislature in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. If passed, it would protect an individual’s “fundamental right to choose to have an abortion,” along with the right to birth control. (Bluth, 9/22)
AP: Mississippi City Proposes Newborn Safe Haven Wall Box
Long Beach has become the first Mississippi city to start approval of a “baby box,” where parents can anonymously give up infants. The baby box would be the first installed between Texas and Georgia, The Gazebo Gazette reported. (9/21)
The Colorado Sun: Young Teens In Foster Care Don’t Know About Birth Control
Teenagers in the child welfare system have sex two years younger on average than other young people and are 2.5 times more likely to get pregnant. New research from the University of Colorado points toward why: About two-thirds of eighth and ninth graders in metro Denver who have been involved with the child welfare system say they have never received information about birth control. (Brown, 9/21)
