Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
US, Other Nations Sign Anti-Abortion Pact; Poland Effectively Bans Procedure
The Washington Post: U.S. Signs International Declaration Challenging Right To Abortion And Upholding ‘Role Of The Family’
The United States joined Brazil, Egypt, Hungary, Indonesia and Uganda on Thursday to co-sponsor a nonbinding international antiabortion declaration, in a rebuke of United Nations human rights bodies that have sought to protect abortion access. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar participated in the virtual signing ceremony. The Geneva Consensus Declaration aims to promote women’s health, “defends the unborn and reiterates the vital importance of the family,” Pompeo said at the ceremony. (Berger, 10/22)
The Guardian: US Signs Anti-Abortion Declaration With Group Of Largely Authoritarian Governments
The “Geneva Consensus Declaration” calls on states to promote women’s rights and health – but without access to abortion – and is part of a campaign by Trump administration, led by secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, to reorient US foreign policy in a more socially conservative direction, even at the expense of alienating traditional western allies. The “core supporters” of the declaration are Brazil, Egypt, Hungary, Indonesia and Uganda, and the 27 other signatories include Belarus (where security forces are currently trying to suppress a women-led protest movement), Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Sudan, South Sudan, Libya. (Borger, 10/22)
And protests break out after Poland bans abortions —
CBS News: Angry Protests As Poland's Top Court Bans Virtually All Abortions
Hundreds of people took to the streets in cities across Poland on Thursday night, protesting against the tightening of the country's abortion laws, which were already among the strictest in Europe. Police met the protesters with pepper spray in some places, and at least 15 demonstrators were arrested. Clashes between protesters and the police turned violent in the capital city of Warsaw after a ruling by the Constitutional Court left virtually all abortions banned in the conservative country. (Noryskiewicz, 10/23)
The Wall Street Journal: Poland’s Top Court Tightens Strict Abortion Laws
Poland’s top court declared abortions unconstitutional when conducted because of fetal abnormalities, a victory for the Catholic conservative ruling party in its yearslong struggle to further tighten some of Europe’s strictest such laws. Poland will now only allow abortions in cases of rape, incest, or when the health of the woman is at stake. Its laws make the majority Catholic country nearly the hardest place in the European Union to terminate a pregnancy, excluding tiny states such as Malta or in jurisdictions such as Northern Ireland, where such procedures are illegal. (Hinshaw and Ojewska, 10/22)
In other news about abortion —
CBS News: Mississippi Asks Supreme Court Again To Review Its 15-Week Abortion Ban
The Mississippi attorney general petitioned the Supreme Court again on Thursday to review the state's 15-week abortion ban, a case that directly challenges Roe v. Wade and has the potential to reverse the landmark 1973 decision. The request came just hours after Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to approve Amy Coney Barrett's nomination to the high court. The full Senate confirmation vote is expected on Monday. (Smith, 10/22)
Yahoo News: Trump Has Sparked A Shift In How Some Conservatives Talk And Think About Abortion
A political cartoon that’s been widely shared on Facebook shows a horse labeled “Christian Voters” pulling a buggy with an elephant — the GOP — holding the reins, while the horse tramples over three individuals who represent “the Widow,” “the Orphan” and “the Stranger.” The Republican elephant dangles a giant carrot — labeled “Overturn Roe v. Wade” — in front of the horse, while driving a cart labeled “Corporate Interests” that carries bags of money bearing the words “Tax Cuts for 1%.”It’s a critique of conservative evangelicals that is picking up steam — including among evangelicals. (Ward, 10/21)
