Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
As House Pushes To Defund Planned Parenthood, State-Level Money Already Cut In Many Places
Federal funds for Planned Parenthood are on the chopping block in the U.S. House on Friday, as Republicans aim to strip the women’s healthcare provider of as much as 41 percent of its revenue, comprised of government health service grants and reimbursements. But in Texas, the Republican-controlled Legislature has already stripped the group of most government funding – state and federal. However the fight plays out in Congress, the impact in Texas would be minimal. (Ayala, 9/18)
Iowa’s Planned Parenthood chapter receives no state money to pay for abortions, state administrators have confirmed to Gov. Terry Branstad. Branstad asked the Iowa Department of Human Services and Department of Public Health last month to review their contracts with Planned Parenthood. His request came after abortion opponents created a national uproar by posting videos that suggested other Planned Parenthood chapters illegally sold parts from aborted fetuses. Spokeswomen for the state agencies said Thursday that the reviews have confirmed no state money goes for abortions. (Leys, 9/19)
The Planned Parenthood Association of Utah's fight to maintain its federally funded programs in the state will be spearheaded in part by Kate Kelly, the attorney who led a push for female ordination in the LDS Church. Kelly will join the staff of the Utah family-planning organization Monday as strategic advocacy and policy counsel — a new position created, Kelly said, as part of the group's "aggressive response" to Utah Gov. Gary Herbert ordering state agencies to stop distributing federal funds to Planned Parenthood. An outreach coordinator was also hired. (Knox and Piper, 9/18)
In other news, a Virginia abortion doctor is ordered to pay $4 million to the daughter of a patient he was convicted of killing -
An abortion provider convicted of killing babies born alive has been ordered to pay nearly $4 million to the daughter of a Virginia woman who was given a lethal dose of Demerol while under his care. Lawyers say it is unlikely 41-year-old Karnamaya Mongar's daughter will ever see any of the judgment awarded this week. They say imprisoned former doctor Kermit Gosnell is broke and that he and his shuttered clinic don't have insurance. (9/18)
