Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Family Of Texan Who Was Denied An Abortion Sues State Over Restrictive Ban
The New York Times: Family of Woman Who Died While Pregnant Sues Texas Over Abortion Ban
Other lawsuits by women who say they were denied abortions despite grave risks to their lives or their fetuses have been dismissed or blocked by state courts. This lawsuit claims that state officials created a climate of fear that kept doctors from ending Tierra Walker’s pregnancy before she died. (Sandoval, 9/16)
More reproductive health news —
The Hill: Major Abortion Rights Group Sets Sights On Arizona, Michigan, Nevada For Midterm Push
A major abortion rights group is expanding its outreach efforts in key battleground House districts ahead of November’s midterm elections. Reproductive Freedom for All (RFFA) said it is investing about $1 million into a direct voter contact campaign across three priority districts in Arizona, Michigan and Nevada. (Weixel, 9/16)
New Hampshire Public Radio: NH Nonprofit Expands To Make Reproductive, Gender-Affirming Care Accessible To More
A New Hampshire organization that has been helping people access reproductive health care since 2021 and gender-affirming care since 2023 has changed its name in an effort to better reflect its mission and reflect that transgender care is a part of it. Previously known as the Reproductive Freedom Fund of New Hampshire, the Live Free Autonomy Collective says the rebrand coincides with an effort to serve more people and expand their offerings. (Richardson, 9/16)
The Hill: Josh Hawley Pushes Republicans To Sign Anti-Abortion 'Declaration For Life'
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) is working with Christian groups to push Republican officeholders and candidates to sign a “Declaration for Life” pledge to fight for legislation to restrict abortion. Hawley announced the pledge after hosting the first Missouri Prayer Breakfast with dozens of pastors in the historic Kennedy Caucus Room in the Russell Senate Office Building. (Bolton, 9/16)
KFF Health News: Listen To The Latest ‘KFF Health News Minute’
Zach Dyer reads the week’s news: The high cost of fertility treatment is making some Americans look abroad for help getting pregnant. Plus, a nonprofit in Austin, Texas, is trying to keep its city’s music scenes going by helping artists pay for health insurance. (9/17)
In other health news from across the U.S. —
The CT Mirror: Four Rural CT Hospitals Receive $46 Million In Federal Health Grants
Four rural Connecticut hospitals are getting millions in federal grant dollars that will be used to expand and upgrade imaging, telehealth and transport services, among other initiatives. (Allen, 9/16)
The CT Mirror: CT Announces AI Regulations For State Employee Health Plans
Amid a surge in the national debate about the dangers of artificial intelligence, Comptroller Sean Scanlon on Wednesday announced regulations governing the use of AI technology by health insurance companies that administer benefits for the state employee health plan — rules he wants lawmakers to extend more broadly in 2027. (Golvala, 9/16)
Cardinal News: About 120,000 Fewer Virginians Have SNAP, While Food Prices Rise And Food Pantries Race To Keep Up With Demand
Christopher Fields has more mouths to feed now, so he didn’t know what to expect when he took his first trip to a food pantry on a recent Thursday morning. Loading his truck with juices and peanut butter, he knew the extra food would help fill the bellies of the children, ages 3 and 5, he recently gained custody of, and that they would be especially happy about the watermelon. (Malinak, 9/17)
Spotlight on Maryland: Maryland Fails To Process Hundreds Of Disability Appeals, Violating Federal Rules
Hundreds of Marylanders have filed appeals amid budget cuts and denials of disability services over the past two years. In more than two hundred cases, the state has failed to process those appeals, violating federal rules. (Conrad, 9/17)
ProPublica: Oregon Lawmakers Seek To End Secrecy Around Housing Subsidies
Two Oregon lawmakers want to end an unusual exemption in the state’s records law that has kept the public from learning how hundreds of millions of dollars in taxpayer money is spent on subsidized housing — and the effort has already landed key industry support. Rep. Pam Marsh, chair of Oregon’s House Committee on Housing and Homelessness, told ProPublica that she plans to introduce legislation next year to eliminate a law that shields key details of state spending on low-income housing. (Davis, 9/17)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Indictment: Threats, Violence Used To Keep Immigrant Farmworkers In Line
Federal investigators say they’ve uncovered a new conspiracy to exploit migrant farmworkers in Georgia, further cementing the state’s role as a site of recurring labor violations in agriculture. In an indictment unsealed on Tuesday by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia, authorities described a ploy to profit off Mexican farmworkers by fraudulently using a seasonal visa program to bring them to South Georgia — and then relying on intimidation, threats and violence to keep workers from leaving. (Grinspan, 9/17)
ABC News: NC Teen Who Died From Brain-Eating Amoeba Likely Infected From Community Center Water Feature: Officials
The North Carolina teenager who died after contracting a rare brain-eating amoeba called Naegleria fowleri was likely infected from a water feature at a community center, according to state and local officials. Naegleria fowleri, also known as primary amebic meningoencephalitis or PAM, has been found in warm freshwater, including ponds, lakes and rivers, and it grows best in hotter water, according to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. (Arancio and Shapiro, 9/16)
NPR: This Arizona Medical Examiner Is Tracking Heat-Related Deaths
Greg Hess deals with death day in, day out. Hess is the medical examiner for Pima County, Ariz., a region along the United States-Mexico border. His office handles some 3,000 deaths each year — quiet deaths, overdoses, gruesome deaths, tragic ones. From April through October every year, Hess is confronted with an increasingly obvious and dramatic problem: His morgue drawers fill with people who died sooner than they should have because of Arizona's suffocating heat. (Borunda, 9/16)
KFF Health News: California Eyes Prison Heat Protections That Fall Short Of Workplace Standards
As Californians have weathered relentless heat waves, state workplace safety regulators have repeatedly reminded employers to protect employees from heat illness by providing water, shade, cooldown areas, and additional rest breaks when temperatures climb. But there’s a notable exception in the state’s heat safety rules: Not covered are the nurses, guards, staff, and tens of thousands of incarcerated people who work in California’s aging correctional facilities, which are largely not air-conditioned. (Rode, 9/17)
