Abortions are resuming at a Wyoming clinic after judge suspends laws
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Wyoming's only abortion clinic is resuming abortions after a judge on Monday suspended two state laws.
One suspended law would require clinics providing surgical abortions to be licensed as outpatient surgical centers. The other would require women to get an ultrasound before a medication abortion.
Wyoming Health Access in Casper had stopped providing abortions Feb. 28 , the day after Republican Gov. Mark Gordon signed the licensing requirement into effect.
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Fewer than 1 in 4 Colorado voters support Medicaid cuts
(Stock photo by) Just 21% of Colorado voters want Congress to decrease Medicaid spending, according to a poll released Tuesday. Concerns about gutted health care access come as U.S. Senate Republican leaders work to push through a tax and spending bill that would cut Medicaid by an estimated $625 billion over the next decade. The poll zeroed in on the 8th Congressional District, which includes the northern Denver metro area and parts of Weld County. In the district, where 1 in 4 residents receive Medicaid benefits, 63% of voters said they would be less likely to vote for a candidate who voted to cut Medicaid. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The 8th District is represented by Republican Gabe Evans, who voted in favor of the plan that would reduce federal Medicaid spending when it was brought to the U.S. House of Representatives in May. A spokesperson for Evans defended the vote, saying a proposed provision to institute part-time work requirements for some people to retain Medicaid eligibility would make 'the program more efficient by cutting out fraud, waste, and abuse.' 'Congressman Gabe Evans has been steadfast in his support of protecting Medicaid for the vulnerable populations it was created to serve — pregnant women, kids, and disabled people,' said spokesperson Delanie Bomar in a statement Tuesday. Evans, who was elected to the House last year, represents one of the country's few congressional swing districts. According to the poll, 42% of voters in the district want to see increased federal Medicaid spending, 20% want it to stay about the same and 28% want it to decrease. Medicaid, the state-federal health care program for lower-income people and some with disabilities, serves more than 70 million U.S. residents. The poll of 675 registered Colorado voters was conducted by Broomfield-based firm Magellan Strategies on behalf of the nonprofit Healthier Colorado. It has a margin of error of 3.7%. 'Politicians are saying that they want to cut Medicaid to make it better, but the poll shows clearly that voters aren't buying what they're selling,' said Jake Williams, CEO of Healthier Colorado. 'It shows that there's real political peril for any candidate who votes to cut Medicaid.' Bomar pointed to the poll's findings that many respondents, especially those who are Republicans or unaffiliated, said Medicaid 'should only be for U.S. citizens or legal residents, with some calling for stricter eligibility enforcement.' Immigrants who are in the U.S. unlawfully are not eligible for federal Medicaid benefits, but Colorado and 13 other states provide some state-funded coverage to immigrants lacking permanent legal status. Under the proposed federal cuts, an estimated 7.8 million people, most of them citizens or lawful residents, would lose access to Medicaid, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. Some of the main reasons cited in the poll by respondents who said they have favorable opinions of Medicaid are the benefits it provides to low-income Coloradans, seniors, children, people with disabilities and single parents. 'The poll shows that Medicaid cuts would have devastating effects for both our health and economy here in Colorado,' Williams said. 'I also think it shows that Colorado voters aren't dummies.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
30 minutes ago
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Sen. Collins grills NIH director on research cuts
Jun. 10—Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, the new director of the National Institutes of Health, faced sharp questions from Sen. Susan Collins and other senators Tuesday about a proposed 40% budget reduction at the NIH and other cutbacks that are disrupting biomedical research. Bhattacharya appeared before the Senate Appropriations Committee's subcommittee on labor, health and human services and education on Tuesday as the Trump administration has slashed funding for biomedical research and public health. On Monday, hundreds of NIH scientists signed a letter, called the "Bethesda Declaration," asking the Trump administration to protect funding for biomedical research. Also Monday, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. raised concerns among public health advocates when he summarily dismissed all 17 members of a key committee that advises the government on approving vaccines. Kennedy, who has falsely questioned the safety and efficacy of vaccines, has not said who he would place on the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which among other duties, recommends the formulation for the annual influenza vaccine. At the Senate hearing Tuesday, Bhattacharya largely dodged questions about the Trump administration's proposals to slash the agency, and the ongoing cuts to research grants. Collins, who voted to confirm Bhattacharya but has decried NIH cuts, questioned why the Trump administration is requesting a $19 billion cut to the NIH in the 2026 budget, which she said would "undo years of congressional investment." "It would delay or stop effective treatments and cures being developed for diseases like Alzheimer's, cancer and Type 1 diabetes," said Collins, who is chair of the Appropriations Committee. "We also risk falling behind China and other countries that are increasing their investment in biomedical research." Bhattacharya said the agency is "fully committed" to making progress on Alzheimer's and that the 2026 budget will be a "collaboration" between Congress and the White House. But, despite getting a series of questions from Collins and other Republican and Democratic senators, Bhattacharya did not specifically address the rationale for the budget cuts. Collins has also been speaking out for months against the agency's moves to cap the amount of money that biomedical researchers can use for indirect costs at no more than 15% of their NIH grants. The indirect costs include overhead expenses, equipment and technical support for scientific research and scientists say the cap would hobble research laboratories in Maine and across the country. The amount that NIH grants pay for indirect costs varies by grant, but made up 26% of the cost of each grant, on average, in 2023. Collins has also directly lobbied Kennedy to reverse the NIH cap on indirect costs, and Maine has joined other states in a lawsuit to block the cuts. On Tuesday, Collins said she is still "alarmed and surprised the administration's budget request (for next year) contains the same 15% cap." Bhattacharya said he couldn't discuss the indirect costs issue because of the pending lawsuit, but that there's "lots of great possibilities for reform" on how NIH awards grants for research. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wisconsin, also pointed out that the NIH has so far in 2025 spent $3 billion less on biomedical research compared to the same time in 2024, largely by freezing or denying grant funding on research that Congress previously approved. Much of the denied funding is the subject of pending lawsuits by states and universities that argue the Trump administration is illegally blocking the funding. The lawsuits argue that the executive branch is required to spend money that Congress approves, and the Trump administration does not have the power to block previously approved funding. "How is this anything other than sabotaging biomedical research?" Baldwin said. Bhattacharya did not answer, except to say he's "happy to work with Congress" on funding issues. Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Illinois, said the cuts to research are disturbing. "For God's sake, we lead the world in medical research. Why would we walk away from it?" Durbin said. Copy the Story Link
Yahoo
3 hours ago
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RFK Jr. made some promises on vaccines to get confirmed. Is he breaking them?
The Trump era is rife with Republicans who abandon their principles in the name of toeing Donald Trump's line. But few have gambled with those principles recently like Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy. The chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee in February played the pivotal role in confirming a longtime purveyor of vaccine misinformation, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., as Health and Human Services secretary. Cassidy did so despite often citing how 30 years of practicing medicine taught him how crucial vaccines are – and despite his very public reservations about Kennedy's views and motivations on the subject. He also did so at a time when vaccine skepticism has risen sharply on the right, meaning Cassidy's strongly held beliefs were already losing ground. At Kennedy's confirmation hearing, Cassidy recalled loading an 18-year-old woman who had hepatitis B onto an ambulance so she could get an emergency liver transplant. 'And as she took off, it was the worst day of my medical career, because I thought $50 of vaccines could have prevented this all,' Cassidy said. 'That was an inflection point in my career.' Cassidy, who faces reelection and likely a primary challenge in 2026, ultimately gave Kennedy a decisive vote, after obtaining what the senator cast as a series of vaccine-related concessions. But pretty much ever since then, Kennedy has tested the spirit of that agreement, if he hasn't violated it outright. Most recently, that took the form of Kennedy on Monday removing all 17 members of an expert panel of advisers that guides the federal government's vaccine recommendations. Many immediately cast this as contrary to what Kennedy promised Cassidy. It's not quite so simple, for reasons we'll get to. But plenty of other actions could fit into that category. For his part, Cassidy on Monday would not tell CNN whether he regrets his vote for Kennedy. Last month, the senator said Kennedy had 'lived up to' the agreement. But at other times, he has taken issue with Kennedy's actions. It's worth a review of what Cassidy said back then – and since. Cassidy laid out the conditions during a speech on the Senate floor. In those February remarks, Cassidy cited the same vaccine advisory panel Kennedy just cleared out. 'If confirmed, he will maintain the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices' recommendations without changes,' Cassidy said, according to video of his remarks. An old transcript of Cassidy's speech on his own website omitted the word 'recommendations,' leading Kennedy's critics on Monday to accuse him of breaking his word by changing the makeup of the committee itself. But Cassidy's comments pertained to the committee's recommendations. (CNN has reached out to Cassidy's office about the transcript.) Cassidy in an X post Monday expressed concern about what comes next. He cited a 'fear' that 'ACIP will be filled up with people who know nothing about vaccines except suspicion.' 'I've just spoken with Secretary Kennedy, and I'll continue to talk with him to ensure this is not the case,' he added. He declined to go further when pressed by CNN's Manu Raju. Cassidy also said in his February speech that Kennedy had 'committed that he would work within current vaccine approval and safety monitoring systems and not establish parallel systems.' But just in the past two weeks, Kennedy announced changes to the CDC's recommended vaccine schedules without ACIP's input. 'CDC will not remove statements on their website pointing out that vaccines do not cause autism,' Cassidy said in his speech. There is no evidence that the CDC has done this. But Kennedy has taken actions that seem geared toward his longstanding and debunked linking of vaccines to autism, which Cassidy took exception to at Kennedy's confirmation hearing. Most recently, this took the form of launching a 'massive testing and research effort' to find the causes of autism, which critics worry will be geared toward vaccines. And indeed, CNN previously reported HHS had asked the CDC to study vaccines and autism, despite strong evidence there's no link between the two. This is one area where Cassidy has expressed reservations. 'I'll point out that has been clearly laid to rest,' the senator said in April of the supposed link between vaccines and autism, according to The Advocate. 'The more resources we put towards that, we are not putting towards actually finding out what is the cause of autism.' Finally, Cassidy's floor speech suggested Kennedy had provided assurances that he wouldn't use his position to 'wrongfully' create suspicion about vaccines. 'I will watch carefully for any effort to wrongfully sow public fear about vaccines [through] confusing references of coincidence and anecdote,' Cassidy said. 'But my support is built on assurances that this will not have to be a concern …' There is no question Kennedy as HHS secretary has said many things that could undermine confidence in vaccines – often using misinformation. Amid a measles outbreak in Texas, Kennedy wasn't quick to explicitly recommend the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine, while floating unconventional treatments like vitamin A in ways that experts worried would discourage vaccinations. He also made a series of claims about the MMR vaccine that experts reject. These have included that it contains 'fetal debris' and that it 'was never safety tested.' He has also claimed that no childhood vaccine except the Covid-19 vaccine has been fully tested against placebos. But that's not true — something Cassidy pointed out in perhaps the most significant example of him calling out Kennedy. After Kennedy made the claim at a hearing last month, Cassidy returned to the hearing to correct him. 'The secretary made the statement that no vaccines except for Covid have been evaluated against placebo,' Cassidy said. 'For the record, that's not true. The rotavirus, measles and HPV vaccines have been, and some vaccines are tested against previous versions. So, just for the record to set that straight,' Cassidy said. It was the kind of claim that might lead one to wonder whether the guy you elevated to such a powerful position was actually living up to the agreement that got him there. Cassidy doesn't seem willing to go there yet. But all signs are Kennedy is going to continue making him second-guess his choices.
