Anti-abortion forces in 28 states are pressuring state lawmakers to pass legislation restricting private health insurance plans from covering abortion services. Currently, under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, private insurance companies that participate in public exchanges are allowed to provide abortion coverage. However, women seeking abortion coverage must make two separation payments – […]
President Obama named Florida Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D) to replace former Virginia Governor Tim Kaine (D) as the chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) for the 2012 election cycle. Congresswoman Wasserman Shultz will be the first woman chair of the DNC since Debra DeLee, who served from 1994 to 1995. Wasserman Shultz is […]
Forty-one senators, composed of thirty-nine Democrats and two Independents led by Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), announced that they will filibuster any spending bill blocking funding to Planned Parenthood. Following the Senate vote to approve another short-term spending measure in mid-March, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) announced that an amendment to defund Planned Parenthood will […]
On Sunday, the Texas Republican-controlled House of Representatives voted 98-49 to approve a two-year budget proposal that would cut family planning funding, as well as funding for public schools, nursing homes, and college financial aid. The bill proposes to transfer $40 million of state funds previously allocated for family planning services to other programs, including […]
A new policy took effect on Friday in Wales that will allow women and girls over the age of 13 to obtain emergency contraception free of charge and without a prescription. Welsh Health Minister Edwina Hart stated that the plan is part of an initiative to reduce the number of teenage pregnancies in Wales, which […]
Vice President Joe Biden and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan will announce a new national sexual assault awareness campaign for colleges and K-12 schools at the University of New Hampshire today. The campaign aims to educate schools about their responsibilities in preventing and responding to sexual assaults under Title IX, the federal law prohibiting sexual […]
On Saturday, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer (R) signed a bill, sponsored by Representative Kimberly Yee (R-Phoenix) and Senator Nancy Barto (R), requiring that doctors offer every woman considering an abortion an ultrasound and the option to hear the fetal heartbeat, if detected. The bill also prohibits medical providers from prescribing mifepristone, also known as RU-486 […]
Two anti-abortion groups, Operation Rescue of Wichita, Kansas and Maryland Coalition for Life, have rented the building across the street from the Reproductive Health Services Clinic in Germantown, MD to open what appears to be a crisis pregnancy center (CPC). Both groups have focused on this clinic ever since Dr. Carhart, who worked with the […]
Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell (R) added an amendment to a bill passed by the state’s general assembly that would prohibit private health insurance companies that participate in the state health exchange from covering abortion services, except in cases of rape, incest, and when the woman’s life is endangered. The amendment would also ban women from […]
Yesterday, the Ohio House Health and Aging Committee voted 12 to 11 on the “Heartbeat Bill” (HB 125) that would require women seeking abortions to undergo an ultrasound and prevent them from obtaining abortions if a fetal heartbeat is detected. The bill does not make an exception for cases of rape or incest. Kellie Copeland, […]
Yesterday, a bill restricting the collective bargaining rights of unions passed in the Ohio House by a vote of 53 to 44 and the Ohio Senate by a vote of 17 to 16, with six Republican senators voting against the bill. Republican Governor John Kasich stated that he will sign the bill by the end […]
On Monday, the North Dakota Senate approved an amendment to a sex education bill (HB 1229) that would require public schools to teach abstinence-only sex education. The bill passed in the Senate by a vote of 39 to 8 and will now move to the state House for a vote. Last week, the North Dakota […]
This morning the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (EDNA) was reintroduced in the House of Representatives by Congressman Barney Frank (D-MA). The bill would require that federal employment laws, which currently prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, religion, gender, national origin, age, and disability, also protect against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender […]
Today the US Supreme Court will hear Wal-Mart v. Dukes to determine whether over 1.6 million women who work or have worked for Wal-Mart can sue the retailer together as a single class. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled three times to allow the lawsuit to receive class-action status, but Wal-Mart claims that […]
Republican Governor Bob McDonnell signed a bill requiring that clinics that perform first trimester abortions meet the Board of Health regulations on hospitals, which are far more stringent than the regulations on physician’s offices. The Virginia Senate and House voted to pass the bill in February. Tarina Keene, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia, stated, […]
The Arkansas Public Health and Safety Committee passed HB 1855, a bill requiring medical facilities that provide over ten non-surgical abortions per month to meet the standards of out-patient surgical centers and obtain a license from the state Health Department. The bill would require clinics to be equipped with defibrillators and ventilators and would impose […]
During a Women’s History Month program at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Former Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders espoused the benefits of comprehensive sex education for students in order to prevent unplanned pregnancy. Elders clarified, “If you can’t control your reproduction, you can’t control your life. If you don’t educate young people about their sexuality […]
We are saddened today to learn of the death of Geraldine Ferraro. She was an historic feminist, a compassionate humanitarian and a role model for generations of women and girls seeking to break the glass ceiling. She was a champion for women’s rights during her three terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, but of […]
On Wednesday, the Idaho Senate voted to approve the Unborn Child Protection Act, a bill banning abortions after 20 weeks, unless the woman’s life is endangered, and making it a felony for abortion providers to conduct the procedure after 20 weeks. Last week, the Idaho Senate State Affairs Committee passed the bill by a vote […]
The Colorado Senate passed a civil union bill (SB 127) yesterday by a vote of 23 to 12. The bill, introduced by Senator Pat Steadman (D) would allow same-sex couples to enter into civil unions and attain some of the same benefits enjoyed by married couples, such as the right to visit a partner in […]
