States Are Failing New And Expecting Moms In Mental Health, Report Finds

The Hill: Most States Receive D’s, F’s In Maternal Mental Health Report Card
Jaqueline Sharp, 35, remembers her anxiety “went through the roof” shortly after she gave birth to her son in 2019. ... Sharp is one of the millions of women whose mental health declined after delivery. About 1 in 5 pregnant or postpartum women in the United States will experience a mental health disorder like depression, anxiety or suicidal ideation, according to the American Psychiatric Association. But very few of these women will receive treatment. (O’Connell-Domenech, 5/15)

Roll Call: Administration Releases Maternal Mental Health Plan 
The Biden administration on Tuesday announced the first national maternal mental health strategy, seeking specific actions from Congress and multiple federal agencies to reduce the effects of untreated mental health and substance use conditions during and after pregnancy. (Raman, 5/15)

KFF Health News: Federal Panel Prescribes New Mental Health Strategy To Curb Maternal Deaths
Milagros Aquino was trying to find a new place to live and had been struggling to get used to new foods after she moved to Bridgeport from Peru with her husband and young son in 2023. When Aquino, now 31, got pregnant in May 2023, “instantly everything got so much worse than before,” she said. ... Perinatal depression affects as many as 20% of women in the United States during pregnancy, the postpartum period, or both, according to studies. (Platzman Weinstock, 5/16)

ScienceDaily: Infertility Treatment Doubles The Risk Of Postpartum Heart Disease 
A study by Rutgers Health experts of more than 31 million hospital records shows that infertility treatment patients were twice as likely as those who conceived naturally to be hospitalized with heart disease in the year after delivery. (Rutgers, 5/15)

In news relating to abortion —

The Hill: Almost 7M Black Women Of Reproductive Age Have Little, No Abortion Access: Research
More than 50 percent of Black girls and women of reproductive age live in states with little to no abortion access, according to a new report. The analysis from National Partnership for Women & Families and In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda found that nearly 7 million Black women ages 15-49 live in the 26 states that have banned or are likely to ban abortion. (Daniels, 5/15)

Roll Call: ‘The Right Person’: Harris Takes Lead In Campaign Over Abortion Access 
Vice President Kamala Harris paused briefly after telling an audience last month in Las Vegas, “So, let’s all be clear.” What followed has become a hallmark of her public campaign against states’ abortion bans. “What we are seeing in these states that we are talking about are Trump abortion bans, and he can’t get away from that,” Harris said, repeating the line for effect: “Those are Trump abortion bans.” (Bennett, 5/15)

AP: New Kansas Abortion Clinic Will Open To Help Meet Demand From Restrictive Neighboring States
A new abortion clinic will open in southeast Kansas this fall, bolstering the state’s role as a regional hub for reproductive health services whose neighbors have severely restricted access since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. ... After the Roe reversal, Kansas was the first state where voters weighed in on abortion at the ballot box, resoundingly rejecting a constitutional amendment that could have led to an abortion ban in August 2022. (Fingerhut and Mulvihill, 5/15)

Also —

The Wall Street Journal: Pressure Builds For Supreme Court To Address Transgender Cases
The national legal battle over transgender rights is escalating, making it difficult for the Supreme Court to avoid the hot-button social issue much longer. A growing number of courts have weighed in on several contested issues, including transgender healthcare, medical procedures for minors, participation on school sports teams and limits on drag shows. Some courts have enshrined new rights for transgender individuals, while others have rejected claims for legal protections. (Wolfe and Kusisto, 5/15)

Idaho Statesman: Doctors React To Idaho Ban On Hormone Therapy For Trans Kids
Inside a Boise clinic in April, Dr. Marvin Alviso was meeting with a transgender patient who had been on puberty blockers for a year. The Boise teen was ready and “giddy” to start taking testosterone, Alviso said, as part of the next step in his transition. It’s also a step in the slate of practices recommended in gender-affirming medicine. Alviso was about to prescribe his patient the hormone when he received a message from a nurse to come see her. He left the patient’s room, and the nurse told him the news: The U.S. Supreme Court just allowed Idaho’s gender-affirming care ban for minors to take effect. (Stevenson and Savransky, 5/16)