President Donald Trump will be visiting Puerto Rico on Tuesday to witness first-hand the damage caused by Hurricane Maria and meet with residents who still lack basic necessities. The island — home to more than 3.4 million U.S. residents — is mostly without electricity or running water since Maria made landfall as a major Category 4 hurricane on September 20.
The political and public response to the catastrophe has been muted compared to that of Hurricane Harvey and Irma...
health care
Federal judge blocks law requiring anyone offering abortion advice to register with the state
A federal judge in Florida blocked a law on Friday that would have required anyone offering advice about abortions to register with the state and provide those seeking advice with a detailed explanation of the abortion procedure and alternatives.
The law, which was signed by Gov. Rick Scott last year, would have required abortion “advisers” to pay a $200 fee and offer a “full and complete” definition of abortion and its benefits and drawbacks. What that definition needed to include ...
Federal judge blocks law requiring anyone offering abortion advice to register with the state
A federal judge in Florida blocked a law on Friday that would have required anyone offering advice about abortions to register with the state and provide those seeking advice with a detailed explanation of the abortion procedure and alternatives.
The law, which was signed by Gov. Rick Scott last year, would have required abortion “advisers” to pay a $200 fee and offer a “full and complete” definition of abortion and its benefits and drawbacks. What that definition needed to include ...
Republican senator calls health care, food, and shelter a ‘privilege’
When asked by a high school student in Wisconsin whether he considered health care a right or a privilege, Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) compared access to health care to access to food and shelter, arguing that all three should be considered “privileges” for those who can afford them.
“I think it’s probably more of a privilege,” Johnson said in response to the question. “Do you consider food a right? Do you consider clothing a right? Do you consider...
BREAKING: Tom Price is out as HHS secretary after backlash over taxpayer-funded travel
Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price resigned Friday afternoon, the White House said in a statement, following significant backlash over news that he has taken multiple private jets and military flights — all coming at a significant cost to taxpayers.
PRICE OUT pic.twitter.com/YmfgPZiFgv
— Hadas Gold (@Hadas_Gold) September 29, 2017
The president accepted the resignation earlier today, the statement said. Trump will des...
Utah senator politicized bill that provides insurance to kids. Now his state is the first casualty.
Funding for the Children Health Insurance Program (CHIP), which covers 8.9 million children, expires Saturday because lawmakers were too busy trying to repeal-and-replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
CHIP provides low-cost health insurance to children in families that earn too much money to qualify for Medicaid. Enacted in 1997, CHIP is a companion program to Medicaid, where states had the option to set up an independent CHIP program or extend Medicaid eligibility to children up t...
Illinois governor reverses course, will expand abortion access for low-income residents
It’s been a surprisingly successful week for reproductive rights activists, after Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner (R) said Thursday he would sign into law a bill that would expand taxpayer-subsidized abortions for those covered by Medicaid and state employee insurance.
In April, Rauner said he would veto the bill, but reversed course after meeting with activist groups both for and against the legislation.
“I believe that a woman living with limited financial means should not be pu...
Experts confirm gender identity is biological and say insurers should cover trans health needs
The Endocrine Society, an international organization of medical experts and biological researchers, has released a new set of guidelines for caring for transgender patients. Along with the guidelines, the organization has issued a position statement calling on federal and private insurers to cover the costs of all medical interventions a physician might prescribe for a transgender patient, including hormone replacement therapies and surgeries.
The updated guidelines and position sta...
Here are all the ways Trump could still sabotage Obamacare
Following the failure of the latest Republican health care bill, which couldn’t muster enough votes to pass, President Donald Trump took to Twitter on Wednesday to promise, yet again, to kill Obamacare.
With one Yes vote in hospital & very positive signs from Alaska and two others (McCain is out), we have the HCare Vote, but not for Friday!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 27, 2017
That’s a good reminder that the pu...