Latest KFF Health News Stories
How #MeToo Is Changing Sex Ed Policies — Even In Red States
Liberalized sex education policies are being considered in more states, even traditionally conservative ones, as more female lawmakers take office and legislators react to the #MeToo movement.
Newly Blue Maine Expands Access To Abortion
After a wave of Democratic women were elected in 2018, Maine joins the handful of states that are shoring up the right to an abortion ahead of expected Supreme Court challenges.
Early Abortion Bans: Which States Have Passed Them?
So far in 2019, nine states have passed laws to outlaw abortion or forbid it past a certain point in pregnancy. None of these laws are in effect, and many are being litigated in the courts.
‘An Arm And A Leg’: Expecting A Baby And Unexpectedly Dropped By Insurer
Health care — and how much it costs — is scary. But you’re not alone with this stuff, and knowledge is power. “An Arm and a Leg” is a podcast about these issues, and its second season is co-produced by KHN.
The Unexpected Perk Of My Group Pregnancy Care: New Friends
Group prenatal visits are catching on — they save money and reduce the risk of premature births. It turned out to be the best decision one couple made during their pregnancy.
What The Possible End Of Abortions In Missouri Means For Neighboring States
While Missouri’s final abortion clinic may stop providing the procedure this week, women in the state had already been seeking care in neighboring states as regulations increasingly limited abortion access.
Eric Swalwell’s Tweet About Georgia’s New Abortion Restriction Only Slightly Off-Key
The claim by Democratic presidential candidate Eric Swalwell is correct but could use more context and clarification.
Is It A Feminist Right To Want More Sex? One Company Thinks A Pill Is The Answer
The savvy “Right to Desire” campaign relies on feminist messages and social media to raise patient awareness about low libido. Addyi, the only drug currently approved to treat it, has shown limited effectiveness.
Will Ties To A Catholic Hospital System Tie Doctors’ Hands?
Doctors at the University of California’s flagship San Francisco hospital are sharply divided over a proposal to join forces with a Catholic-run system that restricts care on the basis of religious doctrine — part of a broader public debate as Catholic hospitals expand their reach.
Planned Parenthood’s ‘Risky Strategy’ To Update Its Image
The nation’s largest reproductive health services provider is in the midst of a high-stakes effort to showcase what it considers its vital role in providing community health care.
‘Heartbeat Bills’ Give State Lawmakers Pause On Anti-Abortion Tactics
Ohio is the latest Republican-led state to pass a ban on abortion once a fetal heartbeat can be detected. But Tennessee last week backed off on a similar bill, fearing costly legal battles. What now?
Despite 1991 Ruling, Foes Of New Family Planning Rules See Law On Their Side
Lawyers seeking to block the Trump administration’s decision to alter rules for the Title X family planning program say their efforts will not be stymied by the Supreme Court’s approval of similar rules 28 years ago. They point to new protections enacted in the Affordable Care Act and language in funding bills that shifts the legal calculus.
A Parent-To-Parent Campaign To Get Vaccine Rates Up
Kim Nelson started the group South Carolina Parents for Vaccines after learning that religious exemptions from vaccine requirements were way up in her community.
Women Applaud Michelle Obama’s Decision To Share Her Trauma Of Miscarriage
The attention may help women understand that miscarriage is common but still not easily talked about.
FDA Allows Food Makers To Fortify Corn Masa To Halt Birth Defects, But Few Do
The decision aimed at adding folic acid — a vitamin that can prevent devastating defects of the brain, spine or spinal cord — to flours, chips and tortillas hasn’t caught on with many makers of widely used corn products.
‘Contraception Deserts’ Likely To Widen Under New Trump Administration Policy
Federal family planning funds, known as Title X, will soon fund for-profit women’s clinics that bar condoms, hormonal birth control and IUDs and offer only “natural family planning.”
Pediatricians Put It Bluntly: Motherhood And Marijuana Don’t Mix
Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding should not use marijuana because of serious concerns about neurological consequences for children, the American Academy of Pediatrics said on Monday.
Battle Lines Drawn As Abortion-Rights Activists Leave Their Mark Outside Clinics
Armed with poster board and catchy advertising slogans, abortion-rights activists in California and elsewhere are taking to sidewalks, buses and mobile phone apps to fight a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling in favor of crisis pregnancy centers.
Biorhythms And Birth Control: FDA Stirs Debate By Approving ‘Natural’ App
Critics worry about the message federal officials are sending by approving a new birth control option, which uses a mobile phone app for women to track their body temperature and menstrual cycle to avoid pregnancy. But the more choices the better, some reproductive health experts say.
Babies Dependent On Opioids Need Touch, Not Tech
One doctor in Kansas works to make sure every hospital in the state can provide the soft start, ideally with their mothers, that babies with neonatal abstinence syndrome need.
