She fought to become a midwife. Now she’s fighting to save mothers and their babies in South Sudan

She fought to become a midwife. Now she’s fighting to save mothers and their babies in South Sudan

BENTIU, South Sudan — Elizabeth Nyachiew was 16 when she watched her neighbor bleed to death during childbirth. She vowed to become a midwife to spare others from the same fate in South Sudan, a country with one of the world’s highest maternal mortality rates. “If I saw people dying, I wanted to know why,” … Read more

88-year-old victim in deli meat outbreak underscores risks for those most vulnerable

88-year-old victim in deli meat outbreak underscores risks for those most vulnerable

A lifelong lover of liverwurst, Sue Fleming relished the smoked sausage her husband brought home every few weeks from the grocery store deli. Patrick Fleming always made sure to buy Boar’s Head braunschweiger, the type she liked best, even though it could be costlier than other brands. “My whole family loves braunschweiger,” Sue Fleming said. … Read more

Arizona and Missouri will join 5 other states with abortion on the ballot. Who are the others?

Arizona and Missouri will join 5 other states with abortion on the ballot. Who are the others?

Election officials in Arizona and Missouri this week announced that abortion-rights supporters in their states had gathered enough petition signatures to put proposed amendments enshrining abortion rights into their states’ constitutions, bringing to seven the number of states with abortion votes set for November. The U.S. Supreme Court removed the nationwide right to abortion with … Read more

Dozens of pregnant women, some bleeding or in labor, are turned away from ERs despite federal law

Dozens of pregnant women, some bleeding or in labor, are turned away from ERs despite federal law

WASHINGTON — Bleeding and in pain, Kyleigh Thurman didn’t know her doomed pregnancy could kill her. Emergency room doctors at Ascension Seton Williamson in Texas handed her a pamphlet on miscarriage and told her to “let nature take its course” before discharging her without treatment for her ectopic pregnancy. When the 25-year-old returned three days … Read more

Texas Supreme Court rejects challenge to state’s abortion law over medical exceptions

Texas Supreme Court rejects challenge to state’s abortion law over medical exceptions

AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Supreme Court on Friday rejected a challenge to one of the most restrictive abortion bans in the U.S. following a lawsuit by women who had serious pregnancy complications. The ruling from the court, whose nine justices are all elected Republicans, is the latest decision to uphold Texas’ abortion ban, which … Read more

Planned Parenthood asks judge to expand health exception to Indiana abortion ban

Planned Parenthood asks judge to expand health exception to Indiana abortion ban

INDIANAPOLIS — Abortion providers are asking an Indiana trial judge this week to broaden access to abortions under the state’s near-total ban. Indiana law allows for abortion in rare circumstances, including when the health or life of the woman is at risk, but only at a hospital. Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers are asking … Read more

Which states could have abortion on the ballot in 2024?

Which states could have abortion on the ballot in 2024?

Election officials in Nevada are reviewing signatures to see if there are enough to put an abortion rights constitutional amendment before voters in November, part of a national push to pose abortion rights questions to voters since the U.S. Supreme Court removed the nationwide right to abortion. Since the court’s 2022 ruling, most Republican-controlled states … Read more

Texas health department appoints anti-abortion OB-GYN to maternal mortality committee

Texas Supreme Court rejects challenge to state’s abortion law over medical exceptions

AUSTIN, Texas — Texas’ health department has appointed an outspoken anti-abortion OB-GYN to a committee that reviews pregnancy-related deaths as doctors have been warning that the state’s restrictive abortion ban puts women’s lives at risk. Dr. Ingrid Skop was among the new appointees to the Texas Maternal Morality and Morbidity Review Committee announced last week … Read more

Nevada abortion-rights measure has enough signatures for November ballot, supporters say

Nevada abortion-rights measure has enough signatures for November ballot, supporters say

LAS VEGAS — LAS VEGAS (AP) — Abortion access advocates in Nevada said Monday that they have submitted almost twice the number of petition signatures needed to qualify a measure for the November ballot that would enshrine reproductive rights in the state constitution. Supporters collected and submitted more than 200,000 signatures, Nevadans for Reproductive Freedom … Read more

Bill that would have placed the question of abortion access before Louisiana voters fails

Bill that would have placed the question of abortion access before Louisiana voters fails

BATON ROUGE, La. — A bill that ultimately would have let voters decide whether abortions should be legal in Louisiana, a state with a near-total ban, failed after a Republican-controlled committee rejected it Monday. The legislation proposed an amendment to Louisiana’s constitution that would enshrine reproductive rights for women, including allowing contraceptives such as birth … Read more