Texas Sues Pediatrician, Alleges Illegal Treatment For Transgender Children
The New York Times reports that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton described the lawsuit as the state’s first enforcement action under a 2023 state law. Other news from around the nation comes from New York City, Michigan, North Carolina, and elsewhere.
The New York Times:
Texas Attorney General Sues Doctor Over Treatment For Transgender Minors
Attorney General Ken Paxton of Texas sued a Dallas pediatrician on Thursday, accusing her of providing gender transition treatment to minors in violation of a 2023 state law. Mr. Paxton described the suit as the state’s first enforcement action under the new law. The doctor, May C. Lau, is an associate professor in the department of pediatrics at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, a state school and medical research institution. She also treats young patients at Children’s Health in Dallas, which has ties to UT Southwestern, and has worked at a clinic for transgender adolescents that closed in 2021 under pressure from Texas officials. (Harmon, 10/17)
More health news from Texas and elsewhere across the U.S. —
CNN:
Execution Of Inmate Robert Roberson In ‘Shaken Baby’ Death Is Halted After Last-Minute Texas Supreme Court Decision
The scheduled execution of Texas death row inmate Robert Roberson for the murder of his 2-year-old daughter has been halted after the Texas Supreme Court issued a partial stay late Thursday night, according to court documents. The 11th-hour stay came just over an hour before Roberson’s death warrant was set to expire and followed a remarkable exchange of legal maneuvers as the state and Roberson’s advocates fought over his fate. (Lavandera, Killough and Fritze, 10/18)
The New York Times:
Groups That Run N.Y.C. Shelters Are Riddled With Problems, Report Finds
Self-dealing, nepotism and conflicts of interest are widespread at dozens of the nonprofit groups that run New York City’s $4 billion network of homeless shelters, according to a sweeping report released on Thursday. The comprehensive review, which was conducted by the city’s Department of Investigation, found that some shelter operators were enriching themselves as homelessness climbed to record levels. (Harris,10/17)
CBS News:
Proposed Maternal Health Bills In Michigan Pass Out Of Senate Committee
Maternal health outcomes in Michigan still vary based on location and race, but a package of bills in the state Senate aims to change that. "Once I became a midwife, I knew everybody should have access to this care," said Nicole White, the co-founder of Birth Detroit. (Meyers, 10/17)
CBS News:
Syracuse, N.Y. Has Double The Levels Of Lead In The Water Than Flint, Michigan, NRDC Says
The Central New York city of Syracuse is facing a crisis over lead in the water, the Natural Resources Defense Council said. According to the NRDC, Syracuse has more than double the levels of lead in the water that caused alarm and outrage in Flint, Michigan. The council is calling on authorities to declare a state of emergency in Syracuse. (Zanger, 10/17)
On the aftermath of Hurricane Helene —
KFF Health News:
Mountain Town Confronts An Unexpected Public Health Catastrophe
Before Hurricane Helene, had you stopped by one of the many breweries, art galleries, or award-winning restaurants in Asheville, North Carolina, and spoken with anyone who lives in these parts — including me — most would have told you they felt pretty safe from climate disasters. The mountains of western North Carolina have been known to flood: The area is bursting with creeks and rivers and enjoys an abundance of rain. (Dinan, 10/18)
KFF Health News:
Helene And CVS Land Double Whammy For 25,000 Patients Who Survive On IV Nutrition
The CVS representative popped into Lisa Trumble’s third-floor Berkshire Medical Center hospital room in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, to announce that everything was arranged for Trumble to return home, where she relies on IV nutrition because of severe intestinal problems that leave her unable to eat. That was on Tuesday, Oct. 8. The next morning a social worker and a doctor woke Trumble to say her discharge was canceled. CVS would no longer provide her home nutrition, and she had to stay in the hospital. (Allen, 10/18)
North Carolina Health News:
Post-Helene, Mental Health Providers Help Kids Cope
Weeks after the remnants of Hurricane Helene ravaged western North Carolina, tens of thousands of kids across the region still don’t know when they’ll be able to return to a sense of normalcy. At a Chapel Hill park on a recent sunny afternoon, displaced families, many from the Asheville area, found a place to connect over the unknown. (Vespa, 10/18)
