Molly – Page 11 – REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS ALERTS

26 May

Louisiana votes to make abortion pills controlled substances

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Pills, Controlled Substances, legislation, Louisiana, mifepristone, United States

"Louisiana has become the first state to pass a law that designates abortion pills as dangerous controlled substances. Once Gov. Jeff Landry signs the bill into law, as he is expected to do, possession of the drugs mifepristone and misoprostol without a prescription would be a crime punishable with possible fines and jail time. Louisiana already has a near-total abortion ban, so the medications, which are also used for miscarriages and ulcers, are only available in that state under limited circumstances...."

21 May

Republicans try to soften stance on abortion as ‘abolitionists’ go farther

MollyLatest News, United States"Abortion Abolitionists", Abortion, Fertility Clinic, Health care, IVF, North Carolina, Reproductive Health, Reproductive rights, Republicans, United States

"As some Republicans try to moderate their messaging on abortion over concerns about voter backlash this November, some activists are trying to go much further. Outside a fertility clinic in Charlotte, N.C., last month, dozens of protestors lined both sides of the street, as some shouted toward the closed front door. "How many children are in the freezer here? How many?" one man yelled, interspersing his speech with Bible verses...."

20 May

Ohio voters approved reproductive rights. Will the state’s near-ban on abortion stand?

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion, Abortion Ban, Constitution, Judge, Ohio, Reproductive rights, Ruling, United States, Voting

"A county judge could rule as early as Monday on Ohio's law banning virtually all abortions, a decision that will take into consideration the decision by voters to enshrine reproductive rights in the state constitution. The 2019 law under consideration by Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge Christian Jenkins bans most abortions once cardiac activity can be detected, which can be as early as six weeks into pregnancy, before many women are aware...."

18 May

How Oregon’s new Planned Parenthood leaders are working to meet increasing need for reproductive health services

MollyLatest News, United StatesOregon, Planned Parenthood, Reproductive Health Services, United States

"Oregon’s two Planned Parenthood affiliates both welcomed new CEOs recently. Dr. Sara Kennedy will oversee Planned Parenthood Columbia Willamette, which operates clinics in Vancouver, Washington, the Portland metro area, Salem, Bend and Ontario. Amy Handler will oversee Planned Parenthood of Southwestern Oregon, which has clinics in the Eugene-Springfield area, Grants Pass and Medford. They’re taking over at a time when nearly half of U.S. states, including Idaho, have passed laws restricting access to abortion and other reproductive health services after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022..."

17 May

Louisiana may reclassify drugs used in abortion as controlled dangerous substances

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Pills, Controlled Dangerous Substances, Louisiana, mifepristone, Substances, United States

"Louisiana lawmakers are considering adding two drugs commonly used in pregnancy and reproductive health care to the state's list of controlled dangerous substances, in a move that has alarmed doctors in the state. Mifepristone and misoprostol have many clinical uses, but one FDA-approved use is to take the pills to induce an abortion up to ten weeks gestation...."

18 Apr

Arizona Republicans block another Democratic effort to repeal 1864 abortion ban

MollyLatest News, United States1864, Arizona, Bill, Lawmakers, legislation, Repeal, United States

"...Arizona lawmakers had reconvened on Wednesday after a week's recess, with much attention was on the repeal bill and whether it would move forward. It's unclear how Democrats will next attempt to roll back the strict ban, though members in the state Senate have said they plan to act quickly to take up such efforts in their chamber later Wednesday...."

11 Apr

Why anti-abortion advocates are reviving a 19th century sexual purity law

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Ban, Abortion Pills, Comstock law, legislation, Sexual purity law, United States

"After months of questions about what abortion policies he supports, Donald Trump finally addressed the issue this week, first in a video Monday on social media, saying it's up to states to decide their abortion laws. That statement left many of the biggest questions on his stance unanswered. On Wednesday Trump provided a bit more clarity, telling reporters he would not sign a federal abortion ban if one came to his desk, despite supporting one at 20 weeks during his first term. But he has yet to address the potential for the FDA to restrict abortion pills, which social conservatives argued for at the Supreme Court in March. And he…

10 Apr

Arizona Supreme Court rules a near-total abortion ban from 1864 is enforceable

MollyLatest News, United States1864, Abortion Ban, Arizona, civil war-era, codified, Hearing, legislation, Ruling, State Supreme Court, United States

"The Arizona Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that a 160-year-old near-total abortion ban still on the books in the state is enforceable, a bombshell decision that adds the state to the growing lists of places where abortion care is effectively banned. The ruling allows an 1864 law in Arizona to stand that made abortion a felony punishable by two to five years in prison for anyone who performs one or helps a woman obtain one. The law — which was codified in 1901, and again in 1913 — outlaws abortion from the moment of conception but includes an exception to save the woman’s…

06 Apr

Majority of women in states with abortion bans believe access should be legal

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Bans, Abortion Care, Healthcare, Poll, Reproductive rights, Statistics, United States, Women

"Nearly two years after the Supreme Court ended the federal right to abortion, more than a fifth of reproductive-age adult women in states with abortion bans have struggled to access abortion care themselves or know someone who has, according to first-of-its-kind polling released Friday by the nonprofit, nonpartisan health policy research group KFF. A majority of these women — 67 percent — believe that abortion should be legal in all or most cases, according to the survey taken February 20-28, 2024...."

04 Apr

Arizona organizers say they have more than enough signatures for an abortion ballot measure

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion ballot measure, Abortion Rights, Arizona, enshrining, signatures, State constitution, United States

"A group hoping to put an amendment enshrining the right to abortion in Arizona's constitution said Tuesday that they had gathered enough signatures for the measure to qualify for the ballot in November. There is a requirement for the collection of 383,923 signatures of support for constitutional amendments in Arizona, and Dawn Penich, communications manager for Arizona for Abortion Access, said they have amassed more than 500,000 signatures already..."

02 Apr

Supreme Court Skeptical of Push to Curb Access to Abortion Pill

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Pill, medication abortions, mifepristone, Supreme Court, United States

"In the 2022 case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and held that there is no constitutional right to an abortion, returning the legality of abortion to the states. The court must now decide if access to mifepristone, the drug used in medication abortions, should be restricted. During oral arguments last week, most of the justices seemed reluctant to roll back access to the drug. Instead, they focused on whether the plaintiffs had a legal right, or standing, to sue and questioned whether the doctors in the case, Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for…

29 Mar

Variability in Payment Rates for Abortion Services Under Medicaid

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Care, Abortion Services, Healthcare, Medicaid, Payment Rates, United States

"Medicaid is a joint federal and state program and Medicaid payment rates, which are set by the states, have been the focus of policy attention since its early days. Generally speaking, Medicaid reimbursement rates have historically been lower than those paid by Medicare and are even lower relative to private insurance rates. These lower rates have been cited as a disincentive to Medicaid provider participation, which limits the pool of providers willing to serve Medicaid enrollees and constrains their access to care..."

26 Mar

Supreme Court hears mifepristone arguments as protests gather outside: Highlights

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Care, Abortion Pills, FDA, Healthcare, medication, mifepristone, Planned Parenthood, Supreme Court, United States

"Abortion providers responded to today's oral arguments by emphasizing the safety and effectiveness of mifepristone, stressing that reduced access to the drug could threaten public health. “The very existence of this case puts every other FDA-approved medication at risk of being taken off the market or restricted for political reasons,” Alexis McGill Johnson, CEO of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said in a statement...."

25 Mar

A ‘dangerous precedent’: Doctors and patient advocates fear restricted access to abortion pill

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Pills, Healthcare, mifepristone, Oral arguments, Supreme Court, United States

"About two years after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the court on Tuesday will revisit the issue of reproductive rights, this time contemplating whether to limit access to mifepristone, the first of two pills used in medication abortion. Ahead of oral arguments and eventual ruling, doctors and patient advocates are expressing alarm about what might happen if the high court decides to tighten access to the drug...."

20 Mar

Anti-abortion advocates oppose CT constitutional amendment

MollyLatest News, United StatesAnti-abortion, Connecticut, General Assembly, Reproductive rights, State constitution, United States

"More than 1,500 anti-abortion activists marched on the Connecticut Capitol grounds Wednesday, calling on lawmakers to halt a proposal before the General Assembly that would enshrine reproductive rights in the state’s Constitution. The third annual March for Life drew religious leaders, Catholic school students and other advocates, including state lawmakers from both parties. This year’s gathering comes as abortion rights around the country are being rolled back in some states and expanded in others. Connecticut has extended access to HUSKY for undocumented people seeking abortions and enacted a legal shield to protect doctors who provide abortions, among other protections...."