Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Trump Revamping Reproductive Health Policies To 'Stand For Life'
The Associated Press: Trump Remaking Federal Policy On Women's Reproductive Health
Step by methodical step, the Trump administration is remaking government policy on reproductive health — moving to limit access to birth control and abortion and bolstering abstinence-only sex education. Social and religious conservatives praise the administration for promoting “a culture of life.” But women’s-rights activists and some medical experts view the multi-pronged changes as a dangerous ideological shift that could increase unintended pregnancies and abortions. (Alonso-Zaldivar and Crary, 5/30)
KCUR: Planned Parenthood Seeks To Block Arkansas Abortion Law That Could Affect Missouri
In a case that has implications for Missouri, Planned Parenthood has asked a federal court for a restraining order to block an Arkansas law that effectively bans medication abortions. On Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to take up Planned Parenthood's challenge to the law, which requires abortion providers to contract with back-up physicians with hospital admitting privileges. Planned Parenthood says it has sought in vain to find such physicians. Medication abortions involve a combination of two pills. The woman takes the first at an abortion clinic and typically takes the second at home. Complications from the procedure are rare, with fewer than 1 in 400 patients requiring hospitalization. (Margolies, 5/30)
The Associated Press: Ban On Abortions After 15 Weeks Signed Into Law In Louisiana, But There's One Hurdle Left
A spokesman for Gov. John Bel Edwards said Wednesday that the Democrat has signed the bill , which would only take effect if a federal court upholds a similar law in Mississippi. Senate Bill 181 imposes a prison sentence of up to two years for someone who performs the procedure after 15 weeks. A woman who has an abortion could not be criminally charged under the bill. (Izaguirre, 5/30)
The Washington Post: She Was Convicted Of Disposing Of Her Stillborn Fetus. Now, Va.’s Attorney General Says His Office Made Wrong Call.
Virginia’s attorney general has issued an official opinion that a state law prohibiting the concealment of dead bodies does not apply to stillborn fetuses, a move that will hearten supporters of abortion rights and dismay opponents. The opinion comes after the Virginia Court of Appeals recently upheld the controversial conviction of a southern Virginia woman who was tried and found guilty under the statute for disposing of a fetus that died in her womb, leading to a miscarriage. She was sentenced to five months in jail. (Jouvenal, 5/30)
Denver Post: Boulder County Health Clinics Stand To Lose Federal Funding With Possible Anti-Abortion Rule
The first women’s health clinic in Colorado to provide abortion services is at risk of losing nearly 20 percent of its overall funding should proposed changes to the national family planning program come to fruition under President Donald Trump’s administration. The Boulder Valley Women’s Health Center, which has two locations in Longmont and Boulder, receives about $500,000 each year in funding through Title X, a federal grant program dedicated to providing family planning services as well as preventative health services. (St. Amour, 5/30)
