Molly – REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS ALERTS

27 Mar

A bill proposing a near-total abortion ban causes an uproar at Georgia’s Capitol

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Ban, Abortion Care, Abortion Rights, Georgia, Healthcare, legislation, Reproductive rights, United States

"A crowd of protesters on each side of the abortion debate flooded a windowless Georgia Capitol hallway Wednesday with chants and signs as lawmakers held a hearing on a bill that would ban the procedure in almost all cases. Although the bill will not go anywhere this year because a deadline has passed for consideration by both chambers, the hearing granted by the House’s Republican leadership gave anti-abortion activists a chance to speak out on an issue near and dear to their constituents. Dozens milled about and shouted words of support or disdain for the proposal. Onlookers tried to squeeze…

26 Mar

Kentucky governor vetoes GOP abortion bill, says it undermines doctors and endangers pregnant women

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Ban, Abortion bill, deomcratic governor, Kentucky, Republican-backed bill, United States, Veto

“A Republican-backed bill touted as an attempt to bring clarity to Kentucky's near-total abortion ban was vetoed Tuesday by Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, who said it would do the opposite by undermining the judgment of doctors while further imperiling the lives of pregnant women in emergency situations….”

23 Mar

Abortion once more plays a key role in a state political fight, this time in Wisconsin’s court race

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Care, Abortion Rights, Abortion rolls, Healthcare, Reproductive rights, United States, Wisconsin

"As the candidates for a Wisconsin Supreme Court seat squared off in a recent debate before early voting, one issue came up first and dominated at the start. “Let’s talk about abortion rights,” the moderator said. The winner of the April 1 election could hold the power to determine the fate of any future litigation over abortion because the outcome of the race for a vacancy on the state's highest court will decide whether liberals or conservatives hold a majority...."

11 Mar

OB/GYNs ‘vote with their feet’ as workforce declines in states that restricted abortion

MollyLatest News, United Statesabortion ban states, Abortion Bans, Abortion Rights, Abortion Rights States, Health care, OB/GYN, Reproduction Rights, Reproductive care, Statistics, Study, travel for work, United States, workforce decline

“Modest but significant decreases in OB/GYN practitioners occurred in states with full abortion bans following the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Association, a study showed. However, results of the case-control study revealed the workforce of such practitioners ultimately grew overall across all states…”

10 Mar

Abortion bans are changing career calculations for workers who want kids

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Care, abortion relocation, Abortion travel, employee benefits, Family planning, Health care, job search, job seekers, Reproductive healthcare, Survey, United States

“Employers are navigating a complex benefits landscape when it comes to reproductive health, as they seek to comply with various state laws restricting abortion while ensuring their employees can still access care they need. A recent survey finds reproductive health access is top-of-mind for US adults, and this has implications for HR leaders. Abortion restrictions are prompting some adults to relocate, while reproductive health benefits are proving to be a key factor for job-seekers as they weigh whether to apply for or accept a role. How reproductive healthcare policies are affecting workers, job-seekers. One in five adults planning to have children…

28 Feb

Planned Parenthood to restart regular abortion appointments in Columbia, Kansas City next week

MollyLatest News, United Statesabortion appointments, Abortion Clinic, elective abortion, Missouri, Planned Parenthood, United States

“Two of Missouri’s nine Planned Parenthood clinics are poised to start performing regularly-scheduled surgical abortions next week, though clinic leadership says access to medication abortions is in the hands of the state. The first elective abortion in Missouri since the procedure was banned in 2022 was performed earlier this month in a Kansas City Planned Parenthood clinic. It will now be offering regular appointments for surgical abortions along with the clinic in Columbia, which has not offered the procedure since 2018….”

24 Feb

Supreme Court rejects challenges to abortion clinic ‘buffer zone’ laws that restrict protesters

MollyLatest News, United Statesanti-abortion protests, buffer zone, precedent, Supreme Court, United States

“The Supreme Court on Monday declined to consider overturning a 25-year-old precedent that upheld "buffer zone" laws limiting how close protesters can get to abortion clinic entrances. In a setback for abortion opponents, the court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority hostile to abortion rights, opted against weighing whether such laws violate the free speech rights of protesters under the Constitution's First Amendment….”

23 Feb

Yukon’s only dedicated abortion clinic to lose current space

MollyInternational, Latest NewsAbortion Care, Abortion Clinic, Canada, Health care, Relocation, Whitehorse, Yukon

"The Opal Clinic is currently embedded with the obstetrics, gynecology and sexual health clinics at the Whitehorse General Hospital. Now, both of those clinics are moving to a new location downtown. Opal says the space that's been offered to them is too small...."

22 Feb

Lawsuit filed by 17 states against abortion accommodations in the workplace can proceed

MollyLatest News, United States17 states, abortion acommodations, Lawsuit, Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, proceed, Ruling, United States, Workplace abortion accommodations

"A lawsuit filed by 17 states challenging federal rules entitling workers to time off and other accommodations for abortions may proceed, a federal appeals court ruled. The Eighth Circuit Court’s decision on Thursday reverses Eastern District of Arkansas U.S. District Judge D.P. Marshall, Jr.'s dismissal of the case in June after he found that the states lacked standing to sue. Eighth Circuit Chief Judge Steven M. Colloton, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush in 2003, wrote in Thursday’s opinion that the states do have standing since they are subject to the federal rules. Led by Republican state attorneys general in Tennessee and Arkansas,…

22 Feb

Texas Banned Abortion. Then Sepsis Rates Soared.

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Ban, Data, data analysis, Health care, Hospital, lost pregnancy, Miscarriage, sepsis rate, Statistics, Texas, United States

"Pregnancy became far more dangerous in Texas after the state banned abortion in 2021, ProPublica found in a first-of-its-kind data analysis. The rate of sepsis shot up more than 50% for women hospitalized when they lost their pregnancies in the second trimester, ProPublica found. The surge in this life-threatening condition, caused by infection, was most pronounced for patients whose fetus may still have had a heartbeat when they arrived at the hospital...."

16 Feb

Abortions to resume in Missouri after judge halts licensing requirements

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Care, Abortion clinics, Abortion Rights, Health care, Judge, license, Missouri, Planned Parenthood, resume care, reversal, United Sates

“Planned Parenthood clinics in Missouri will begin offering abortions after a Missouri judge granted a request from the provider to overturn licensing requirements for clinics that provide the procedure. Jackson County Circuit Judge Jerri Zhang on Friday issued an order that declared the state’s licensing requirements discriminatory because they applied only to abortion providers….”

15 Feb

JD Vance abortion buffer zone comments ‘dangerous’

MollyInternational, Latest News, United StatesAbortion Care, Abortion Rights, Buffer Zones, Health care, Health Care Providers, Misinformation, Reproductive Health Care, Scotland, United States, Vance, Vice President

"The American Vice-President JD Vance has been accused of "spreading misinformation" about buffer zones at abortion clinics in Scotland. In a speech at the Munich Security Conference Vance claimed people who live within safe access zones had been sent letters by the Scottish government warning them about praying within their homes. The Safe Access Zones Act came into force last September and prevents protestors gathering within 200m (656ft) of clinics that perform abortions...."

14 Feb

Infant mortality rises in US states with abortion bans, study finds

MollyLatest News, United Statesabortion ban states, infant mortality rate, staristics, Study, United Sates

“Infant mortality rates have increased in US states which have enacted abortion bans following the landmark ruling overturning the nationwide right for women to access the procedure, a new study has found. According to researchers, there were an estimated 478 infant deaths across 14 states with bans or heavy restrictions after six weeks of pregnancy - which they say would not have occurred had they not been not in place. Alison Gemmill, co-leader of the study, said "restrictive abortion policies" could be "reversing decades of progress" in reducing infant deaths across the US….”

13 Feb

Two New Studies Provide Broadest Evidence to Date of Unequal Impacts of Abortion Bans

MollyLatest News, United Statesabortion ban impacts, Abortion Bans, abortion statistics, abortion study, United States

“In two new papers, researchers from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and colleagues estimate that abortion bans in 14 states resulted in 22,180 additional live births and 478 additional infant deaths above what would have been expected in the absence of these bans. Texas imposed what was then the country’s most stringent abortion ban on September 1, 2021. Additional states have enacted abortion bans since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in its landmark Dobbs decision in June 2022. The researchers limited their analysis to the first 14 states that imposed a complete or six-week abortion ban to allow enough…

04 Feb

Doctors who provide abortion, transgender care could get legal protections under Virginia bill

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Care, Abortion travel, Bill, Doctors, gender affirming care, gender affirming care travel, Health care, legislation, Out of State, out of state patients, protections, Reproductive care, state sovereignty, Trans Rights, transgender health care, United States, Virginia

“Virginia moved closer Monday to shielding doctors from extradition if they provide reproductive or gender-affirming healthcare to out-of-state patients, advancing legislation that underscores the deepening divide over healthcare access and state sovereignty. The Senate narrowly passed Senate Bill 1098, sponsored by Ghazala Hashmi, D-Chesterfield, which would block the extradition of health care providers facing criminal charges in other states for performing medical services that are legal in Virginia. Every Republican opposed the measure….”