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Kim Myers used to compete in rodeo-style barrel horse races, but after being sterilized with an implantable device called Essure, the pain was so intense that she had to stop. The device’s small metal and polyester coils had pierced her fallopian tubes, her doctor found, so the two implants were removed. But the sharp, laborlike pains didn’t really subside until three years later, when Ms. Myers had a hysterectomy. (Rabin, 11/21)

On Dec. 1, Pennsylvania will become the latest state to fully reimburse hospitals for providing long-acting forms of birth control to Medicaid patients immediately after they give birth. The change, announced Monday by Gov. Wolf's administration, is expected to increase the use of long-acting methods such as the intrauterine device (IUD) by low-income women on Medicaid, thus reducing the costs of unintended pregnancy. (McCullough, 11/21)