Tubal Ligations Steadily Climbed Since Roe Was Overturned, Study Finds
Researchers broke the data down by states where abortions were “banned,” “limited,” or “protected,” and found increases across all of them, leading to the conclusion that legal uncertainty prompted more people to choose to have their fallopian tubes tied.
AP:
More Women Had Their Tubes Tied After Roe V. Wade Was Overturned
More women chose to have their tubes tied after Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, a new study shows, and the biggest increases were in states that ban abortion. A research letter published Wednesday in JAMA examined insurance claims data from 2021 and 2022 for around 4.8 million women who got tubal ligations, which are surgeries to close the fallopian tubes so the patient can no longer get pregnant. The data came from 36 states and Washington, D.C., and researchers categorized these places as “banned,” “limited” or “protected,” based on their abortion policies. (Ungar, 9/11)
Reuters:
Indiana Judge Refuses To Broaden Medical Exception To Abortion Ban
An Indiana judge on Wednesday refused to broaden the medical exception to the state's near-total abortion ban, ruling against a lawsuit brought by Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers. Judge Kelsey Hanlon of Monroe County Circuit Court acknowledged that the ban, which makes an exception for a "serious health risk" to the mother, put providers in "the incredibly unenviable position" of providing care in a "politically charged environment" under threat of criminal prosecution or loss of their licenses. However, the judge said the plaintiffs had not shown that the exception would prohibit an abortion in violation of women's rights under the state constitution. (Pierson, 9/11)
CalMatters:
Project 2025 To California: Report Abortion Data Or Lose Billions In Medicaid
Project 2025, the 900-page conservative playbook for the next Republican president, issues an ultimatum for California: track and report abortion data to the federal government or risk losing billions in Medicaid funding for reproductive health. California is one of only three states that do not report abortion data to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Madan, 9/11)
The Atlantic:
What Abortion Bans Do To Doctors
Kylie cooper has seen all the ways a pregnancy can go terrifyingly, perilously wrong. She is an obstetrician who manages high-risk patients, also known as a maternal-fetal-medicine specialist, or MFM. The awkward hyphenation highlights the duality of the role. Cooper must care for two patients at once: mother and fetus, mom and baby. On good days, she helps women with complicated pregnancies bring home healthy babies. On bad days, she has to tell families that this will not be possible. Sometimes, they ask her to end the pregnancy; prior to the summer of 2022, she was able to do so. (Zhang, 9/12)
WUSF:
Florida Abortion Restrictions Drive These College Students To Activism
Among the priorities of students advocating for abortion rights: expanding access to contraception and promoting Amendment 4, which would allow abortions in Florida until fetal viability. (Colombini, 9/11)
On pregnancy —
Roll Call:
For Many, Incomplete Answers On Mental Health Care And Pregnancy
Eighteen U.S. states have enacted laws that exclude mental health or risk of suicide among the medical reasons a woman can have an abortion. But women who spoke to CQ Roll Call faced obstacles finding answers on how to treat mental illness during pregnancy even when they were not considering abortion. (Raman, 9/12)
CBS News:
Extreme Heat Is Linked To Pregnancy Complications, Including Stillbirths And Miscarriages — And The Risk Is Growing
Our warming planet is putting those who are pregnant at higher risk — and the impacts go far beyond heat-related illnesses. Research shows that along with the dangers presented to the general population, extreme heat puts pregnant people — and their unborn fetuses — at risk of life-threatening conditions. During pregnancy, expectant moms are more vulnerable to viruses and environmental conditions. And one of the threats comes from tiny insects: mosquitoes that can carry a handful of diseases. (Cohen, Wholf and Jurica, 9/11)
