Latest news with #MichaelB.Thomas
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Nine Florida legislators sign letter to support Planned Parenthood funding
Planned Parenthood funding is under attack (Photo by Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images) Nine Florida Democratic lawmakers sent a letter Monday calling on members of Congress to oppose efforts to defund Planned Parenthood. In all, 562 state lawmakers from 50 states and the District of Columbia signed the letter a letter. The effort was organized by the State Innovation Exchange's Reproductive Freedom Leadership Council (SiX RFLC) and comes after anti-abortion lawmakers in Congress released a draft budget cutting off Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers from Medicaid funds. Reps. LaVon Bracy Davis, Kevin Chambliss, Anna Eskamani, Rita Harris, Dianne Hart, and Felicia Robinson signed the letter. So did Sens. Shevrin Jones, Tina Polsky, and Darryl Rouson. The State Innovation Exchange was founded in 2014 when the Center for State Innovation, the Progressive States Network, and the American Legislative and Issue Campaign Exchange (ALICE) merged. SiX works to promote racial, gender, social, and economic justice. According to Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) one in three women have been to a Planned Parenthood health center for care, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. In Florida, almost 100,000 patients relied on Planned Parenthood health centers for care last year – from birth control and cancer screenings, to STI treatment and wellness visits. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX 'Planned Parenthood is an irreplaceable part of our health care system in Florida,' Laura Goodhue, executive director of the Florida Alliance of Planned Parenthood Affiliates, said in a prepared release. 'These lawmakers understand that 'defunding' Planned Parenthood would shut down health centers and leave patients across our state without access to essential and affordable health care. We are proud to work alongside them to continue fighting relentlessly for access to affordable reproductive health care for all Floridians.' Indeed, Planned Parenthood officials told the Florida Phoenix earlier this month that their clinics expanded their offerings in Florida after the state's six week abortion ban took effect on May 1, 2024. 'We've expanded our service line. I think it's important for the community to know we do much more than abortion care. We do vasectomies, we do prenatal care, we do fertility care. We do menopausal care. It's not just abortions and STDs (sexually transmitted diseases). 'But I think the community is learning that. There's a large need for Planned Parenthood,' Cherise Felix, chief medical officer of Planned Parenthood of South, East, and North Florida told the Florida Phoenix. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
What grade would you give Missouri lawmakers for their performance this year?
A family walks along the Capitol hall at the Missouri State Capitol Building on May 17, 2019 in Jefferson City, Missouri (Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images). There are two weeks remaining in the 2025 legislative session. While there will be a flurry of last-minute maneuvering, lawmakers have had ample time to address some long-standing needs for Missouri and its residents. How would you evaluate what they have accomplished? We may have different lists with different priorities, but there are surely some commonalities among them. Do the current proposed budgets coming from the governor, House and Senate provide adequate funding for public education? A conference committee will convene this week to debate and hash out the final details of the budget. But when it comes to providing the needed funding for K-12 education, the negotiations between what the governor proposed and that of the House and Senate portend to be tough. The outcome will determine how much Missouri's children in public schools stand to be short-changed. What about adequate funding for child care, which is a major problem in Missouri? The governor and Senate have included money in their proposals. The House has not. There are also differences in the proposed funding from all three branches for needed funding for repairs and maintenance at the state's colleges and universities. The same is true for the state employee pay plan. The governor and Senate are proposing one level of funding and the House another. In addition to those areas, the conference committee will have to decide whether they are going to keep nearly a half-billion dollars of earmarks, taxpayers dollars to be spent for special projects across the state. Have you been keeping up with the budget proposals for education and child care? What about the substantial dollars being proposed for special projects? Is there a special earmark(s) included to address some pressing need in your city or community? These are questions that we should be asking the senators and representatives we have sent to Jefferson City to fight for our needs, priorities and interests. We only have a few days left to make our wishes known. What about the non-budgetary issues that are so critical to the wellbeing and quality of life of Missourians? While the Missouri Supreme Court upheld the law requiring paid sick leave for employees, which took effect May 1, there is a bill still in the Senate awaiting passage that would repeal paid sick leave and change minimum wage increase that took effect in January. Proposition A, which increases the minimum wage and requires paid sick leave, passed by 58% of Missouri voters. Yet, the legislature insists on trying to repeal it. The abortion issue that we thought was settled with the passage of Amendment 3 by 52% of voters is once again consuming a lot of legislative time and effort. A proposed constitutional amendment passed out of a Senate committee that will once again ban abortions. The amendment can be placed on the ballot in 2026 or sooner if the governor decides to do so. Missouri lawmakers still seem determined to disregard and thwart the will of the majority of Missourians. Why? Who and what are they working for in Jefferson City? What is their end game? If lawmakers are consumed with trying to undo the will of the people, how much time are they spending anticipating and trying to find solutions to other major problems that the state and a large number of Missourians face now and long-term? Missouri has a severe shortage of affordable housing and a homelessness problem. You would think that would be at the top of every legislative session until solutions are found. Instead, a bill making it more difficult for low-income renters to secure housing seems poised to head to the governor's desk. Is there any planning taking place about how the state will support farmers and other businesses should catastrophic and costly tariffs be put in place? What happens if there are detrimental cuts to Medicaid, Social Security and Medicare? Tens of thousands of Missourians stand to be negatively and severely affected. Are our state senators and representatives working with our members of Congress trying to mount efforts to minimize the negative and costly effects of tariffs and drastic cuts in other areas on our state and fellow Missourians? Are there even efforts to communicate how traumatic those impending tariffs and cuts will be? Lawmakers are left to focus on whatever they desire, or the causes of those who have their ear. Are you among those who have their ear, making your needs and expectations known? Getting needed policies and laws over the finish line is not a sprint but a marathon. They require gaining understanding and training on how to apply effective and sustained engagement with your lawmakers. Focusing a couple of weeks or months before an election is simply not sufficient to win the policy race. The state budget must be finalized by Friday. Everything else must be completed before the legislature adjourns for the year at 6 p.m. on May 16. There is still time to make your voice heard. Are you pleased with how they have addressed the needs of your family, your community, your city? It is a question we all need to ask — and listen carefully to their answers.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Indiana Planned Parenthood affiliate opens virtual clinic
The Planned Parenthood affiliate serving Hoosiers announced it will be launching a virtual clinic in the state. (Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images) The Indiana Planned Parenthood affiliate announced the launch of a virtual clinic on Wednesday, touting it as part of an effort to mitigate provider gaps as other options close. 'For many Hoosiers, telehealth isn't just about convenience — it's about survival. Indiana faces incredibly pressing sexual health challenges, from high STI rates to maternal health crises, all exacerbated by provider shortages, stigmatization, restrictive policies, and barriers to care in rural communities,' said CEO Rebecca Gibron, who also leads the organization's efforts in Hawai'i, Alaska and Kentucky. 'Expanding telehealth options means breaking down these barriers, ensuring patients can access compassionate, high-quality care no matter where they live,' Gibron continued in the release. 'In a state where reproductive health care is increasingly restricted, investing in telehealth is not just practical—it's essential to safeguarding the health and dignity of all Hoosiers.' The Virtual Health Center in Indiana will connect Hoosiers with providers to discuss the following: Birth control Emergency contraception Pregnancy planning Gender-affirming care Testing for sexual transmitted infections Treatment for STIs Menopause support The organization's press release further delved into rural hospital closures and cutbacks to obstetrics services. In Indiana, one-in-four counties are considered to be maternity care deserts, meaning they lack access to obstetric services at hospitals or free-standing clinics. Planned Parenthood pitched the virtual clinic as a way to address those gaps in care, pointing to a report from the Power to Decide on contraceptive deserts that found 428,540 women of reproductive age lacked options in Indiana. Prenatal care is shown to improve care outcomes for both mothers and babies, screening for birth defects and providing timely health care interventions. STIs are also increasing nationwide, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, costings billions each year in treatment and lifelong medical costs. In Indiana, cases of gonorrhea have ticked up slightly while syphilis has more than doubled. The Planned Parenthood virtual clinic will complement the 11 physical health centers located throughout the state. Appointments can be scheduled online by entering a resident's state and selecting telehealth. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Missouri GOP should avoid past mistakes when crafting new abortion amendment
The Missouri state flag is seen flying outside the Missouri State Capitol Building on Jan. 17, 2021 in Jefferson City (Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images). Missourians will likely vote on an alternative abortion amendment in 2026. This amendment will be drafted and summarized by the Republican-controlled Missouri legislature, which aims to roll back provisions in Amendment 3 and further restrict abortion access. Instead of repeating past mistakes that endangered women and babies, Republicans should offer a commonsense abortion amendment. In 2024, Missourians for Constitutional Freedom spent $30 million on a reproductive freedom amendment that narrowly passed at the ballot box. In the same election cycle, Missouri Democrats leaned heavily into pro-abortion messaging in statewide and legislative races yet failed to gain a single seat. Republicans still hold every statewide office and a legislative supermajority. Despite implementing an extreme anti-abortion agenda that made reproductive health care tenuous in Missouri, Republicans faced no electoral consequences. Emboldened by a decisive Trump victory in Missouri, anti-abortion Republicans now believe they can push through a constitutional amendment banning abortion. The legislature has already begun moving forward with this plan. Lawmakers debate new constitutional amendment banning abortion in Missouri On Tuesday, the Missouri House heard testimony on state Rep. Melanie Stinnett's proposed constitutional amendment, which bans abortion except in rare cases. While it may appear to be a departure from the total ban Missourians rejected at the ballot box, in practice, its language creates so many barriers to care that abortion — including life-saving medical treatment — would remain virtually inaccessible. This is clear for three reasons. First, to qualify for an abortion in cases of rape or incest, a woman would be required to report the assault to law enforcement with jurisdiction to investigate the crime. It is well-documented that many survivors do not report sexual assaults to the police. This requirement is not only punitive but unnecessary. Abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood, are already mandatory reporters under Missouri law and must report incidents involving pregnant minors. There is no need to duplicate this law in a constitutional amendment. If the legislature insists on a reporting condition for adults, lawmakers should explore less punitive alternatives that acknowledge the realities of sexual violence. Second, some women choose to terminate a pregnancy due to fetal abnormalities — when the baby will not survive outside the womb due to a catastrophic developmental condition. While Stinnett's bill includes an exception for fetal abnormalities, its wording makes it virtually impossible to meet. Under the proposed criteria, a patient must be carrying a baby with a fetal abnormality and the abnormality must present a serious physical risk to the mother. In reality, many women carrying doomed pregnancies can physically continue the pregnancy but seek to terminate earlier as part of their grieving process or to preserve future fertility. Third, the medical emergency exception is so narrowly written that it would be nearly impossible for physicians to act. The bill, which pulls the language directly from the previous total ban, allows an abortion only to avert death or if a delay 'will' result in both 'substantial' and 'irreversible' harm. But physicians cannot predict the future with certainty, and such restrictive language forces doctors to wait until a woman is critically ill before they can legally intervene. In fact, the way the amendment is written, a woman could arguably only prove to qualify for the medical emergency exception if she actually died. Obviously, that's absurd. The medical emergency exception as written is particularly problematic, as its ambiguity has already led to Missouri women being denied care. In 2023, a pregnant woman in Joplin was refused emergency treatment despite arriving at the ER with premature rupture of membranes. Missouri women and families should have legitimate concerns that reinstating this medical emergency clause could further deter providers from delivering necessary care. The best way to avoid these pitfalls while still protecting life in Missouri is to legalize elective abortion up to a gestational marker — such as 12 weeks. After that point, physicians should have the discretion to determine the necessity of an abortion on a case-by-case basis. This approach would not restrict the legislature's ability to enact commonsense regulations and limits on abortion, an inevitability with an anti-abortion legislature. Missourians for Constitutional Freedom chose to put forth a progressive, gender-neutral catch-all abortion amendment that failed to secure a decisive victory that would have fended off future attacks like this one. Now, Missouri Republicans hold all the cards. But they should remember: Missourians already rejected a total abortion ban. They do not want a new law that amounts to the same thing in practice.
