Category: Women’s Health

Moderna COVID 19 vaccine
Newborn and Infant Health / Pregnancy / Vaccines / Women's Health

Despite federal shift, state health officials encourage COVID vaccines for pregnant women

Experts say the federal shift puts the onus on state health agencies to ramp up vaccine guidance and outreach. Clinicians and public health organizations are trying to dispel misinformation and make sure information reaches low-income people and people of color, who had higher maternal death rates during the pandemic.

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Contraception / Contraceptives / Pregnancy / Women's Health

HHS Eliminates CDC Staff Who Made Sure Birth Control Is Safe for Women at Risk

For more than a decade, a small team of people at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention worked to do just that, issuing national guidelines for clinicians on how to prescribe contraception safely for millions of women with underlying medical conditions — including heart disease, lupus, sickle cell disease, and obesity.

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Illustration of an empty doctor's office.
Abortion / Doctors / Healthcare Providers / Rural Hospitals / Women's Health

Idaho banned abortion. Three years later, minors and seniors struggle to get routine care

It’s been three years since the U.S. Supreme Court issued the Dobbs ruling that ended federal abortion protections and allowed more than a dozen states to implement abortion bans. States that were already struggling with physician shortages say they’re getting worse, especially in rural areas, where many labor and delivery units have also closed their doors. Clinics have closed and resources become more strained with every passing year.

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A pregnant woman sitting on the edge of an examination table talking with her female doctor in the doctors office in claymation style
Blood Pressure / High Blood Pressure / Pregnancy / Women's Health

UW researchers develop test to predict preeclampsia

Researchers at the University of Washington School of Medicine and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle have developed an approach that can predict preeclampsia in pregnant women as early as the first trimester by using cell-free DNA in blood samples. Such a screening test could enable earlier interventions and help prevent the severe complications of preeclampsia.

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Low poly style illustration of a sad, young mother in a darkened room with an infant child
Contraception / Health News / Health Policy / Newborn and Infant Health / Pregnancy / Women's Health

Maternal death reviews get political as state officials intrude

Every state has a committee of medical and public health experts tasked with investigating deaths that occur during and after pregnancy. But as data paints a clearer picture of the impact that state policies such as abortion bans and Medicaid expansion can have on maternal health, leaders in some states are rushing to limit their review committee’s work — or halt it altogether.

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