Category: Law
Abortion Emerges as Most Important Election Issue for Young Women, Poll Finds
Nearly 4 in 10 women under 30 surveyed in September and early October told pollsters that abortion is the most important issue to their vote. Just 20% named abortion as their top issue when KFF conducted a similar survey in late May and early June.
200+ women faced criminal charges over pregnancy in year after Dobbs, report finds
In the year after the U.S. Supreme Court dismantled the federal right to abortion in June 2022, 210 pregnant women in a dozen states were criminally charged for conduct associated with their pregnancy, pregnancy loss or birth. Six states — Alabama, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Ohio, Mississippi and Texas — accounted for most cases.
Will abortion swing the first post-Roe presidential election?
Throughout this election cycle, polls in the swing states have shown bipartisan support for abortion rights, especially when voters are educated about what abortion bans do. Voters in more than half of the states expected to determine the presidential winner have, to varying degrees, lost access to abortion. And abortion-rights activists across these states told States Newsroom they are determined to protect that access, or to get it back.
Since Fall of ‘Roe,’ Self-Managed Abortions Have Increased
Women who self-managed abortion attempts reported using a range of methods, including using drugs or alcohol, lifting heavy objects, and taking a hot bath. In addition, about 22% reported hitting themselves in the stomach. Nearly 4% reported inserting an object in their body.
Conservatives push to declare fetuses as people, with far-reaching consequences
Fetal personhood, a longtime cornerstone of the anti-abortion movement, is the idea that a fetus, embryo or fertilized egg has the same legal rights as a person who has been born. If the law considers fetuses to be people, the thinking goes, then abortion would legally be considered murder.
Data privacy after Dobbs: Is period tracking safe?
Information logged into these apps, or tracked via wearable devices like a Fitbit or an Oura Ring, have the potential to be used in prosecuting those who seek abortions in states which criminalize it.
Arizona’s now-repealed abortion ban serves as a cautionary tale for reproductive health care across the US
Medical students are less inclined to enter the specialty and more likely to avoid training positions, employment or both in states with restrictive or near-total bans. These states also have difficulty retaining existing OB-GYNs.
Oregon’s Drug Decriminalization Aimed to Make Cops a Gateway to Rehab, Not Jail. State Leaders Failed to Make It Work.
Ballot Measure 110, approved by voters in 2020, created a new role for law enforcement in Oregon. While there’s evidence people living with addiction in the state are increasingly finding their way into treatment, the failure to turn police encounters into successful on-ramps to rehab has been cited by critics as prime evidence the measure isn’t working. Oregon lawmakers, noting an ongoing rise in overdose deaths, are now looking to restore jail time for drug possession.
But Oregon’s political leaders themselves played central roles in failing to deliver on the potential for law enforcement to connect people with lifesaving services under the new measure, documents and interviews with a wide array of people involved in the system indicate.
Act expands access to opioid use disorder treatment
Previously, providers were required to complete training and apply for a waiver from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to prescribe buprenorphine. Now, those with a current DEA registration that includes Schedule III authority can prescribe it.
Doctors Emerge as Political Force in Battle Over Abortion Laws in Ohio and Elsewhere
Doctors who previously never mixed work with politics are jumping into the abortion debate by lobbying state lawmakers, campaigning, forming political action committees and trying to get reproductive rights protected by state law.
States stiffen penalties for fentanyl, despite public health concerns
Critics argue that harsh penalties could deter those in need of help and worsen societal disparities.
Snooping in Medical Records by Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital Security Guards Leads to $240,000 HIPAA Settlement
The information accessed included names, dates of birth, medical record numbers, addresses, certain notes related to treatment, and insurance information.
Hospitals in Two States Denied an Abortion to a Miscarrying Patient. Investigators Say They Broke Federal Law.
After her water broke too early, Mylissa Farmer was denied abortion care at emergency rooms in Missouri and Kansas. The Biden administration says the hospitals violated federal law.
Gun Deaths Drive Historic Spike in Child Mortality Rates
After decades of steady improvement, the death rate of America’s children and teens shot up between 2019 and 2021 — and COVID-19 wasn’t the reason.
After Nashville Shooting, Democratic States Push for New Gun Restrictions
In Washington state, Democrats are expecting to enact legislation that would ban semi-automatic rifles, add a 10-day waiting period for gun purchases and allow gun manufacturers and sellers to be liable for negligent sales.