WI CAN News Digest
December 15, 2019 - January 14, 2020
State
Senate Health Committee Signs off on Bills
On January 8, the Wisconsin Senate Committee on Health and Human Services signed off on a series of bills with bipartisan approval, including one which would permit pharmacists to prescribe hormonal contraceptives. The Assembly previously passed versions of these bills. 1.9.20
Prevented Care: The Catholic Church Runs One-Third of Wisconsin Hospitals, Putting Many Reproductive Procedures Off-Limits
Wisconsin is more heavily reliant on Catholic health care than almost any other state. It is the only state where black women are more likely to deliver their babies in a Catholic institution than a non-Catholic one. And in 12 of 72 counties, the only hospitals within the borders are Catholic. In most ways, these Catholic hospitals, which treat one in every seven patients in the United States, differ from secular ones in name only. Yet, critics say, in a small but important corner of reproductive care, Catholic ethics can trump medical best practice, bishops can wield more influence than physicians, and patients can be denied care they desire or need. 12.18.19
When Catholic Hospitals Merge, Reproductive Services Can Change
The shift toward managed care in the mid-to-late 1990s and passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010 pressured health systems to contain costs, fueling mergers between Catholic and non-Catholic hospitals. In several instances in Wisconsin, previously secular hospitals have become subject to Catholic rules which prohibit hospitals from providing procedures the church deems immoral — including abortions, contraception, and sterilization. And even when one Catholic system is acquired by another, access to reproductive services can change. 12.18.19
National
The Coming Supreme Court Showdown over Birth Control
The Supreme Court is expected to announce soon that it will hear Trump v. Pennsylvania and Little Sisters of the Poor Saints Peter and Paul Home v. Pennsylvania, two consolidated cases examining the Trump administration’s rules allowing virtually any employer to deny birth control coverage to its employees. 1.14.20
5 Ways the Health Care Repeal Lawsuit Could Harm Women’s Health and Economic Security
The Texas v. United States ACA repeal lawsuit poses a significant risk to the health and economic security of millions of women and their families, including access to birth control and other preventive services. 1.14.20
Proposed Medicaid Block Grants and Spending Caps Threaten Enrollees’ Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights
Medicaid coverage enables millions of people to access affordable and high-quality sexual and reproductive health care services, but proposals from the Trump administration and conservative lawmakers threaten the integrity of the program. The most recent proposals would impose limits on federal spending for the program through block grants or per-capita spending caps that would jeopardize Medicaid enrollment and the scope and quality of the coverage offered. If applied, these changes to Medicaid would reduce sexual and reproductive health coverage and care. 12.18.19
Amy Klobuchar Lauds Falling Abortion Rates in the US: Campaign Week in Review
In an interview with Cosmopolitan magazine, US Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) pledged to support expanding contraception access as Republicans wage an assault on the ACA's birth control benefit. 12.13.19
News Archive
11.15.19-12.14.19
10.15.19-11.14.19
9.15.19-10.14.19
8.15.19-9.14.19
7.15.19-8.14.19
6.15.19-7.15.19
5.13.19-6.14.19
State
Senate Health Committee Signs off on Bills
On January 8, the Wisconsin Senate Committee on Health and Human Services signed off on a series of bills with bipartisan approval, including one which would permit pharmacists to prescribe hormonal contraceptives. The Assembly previously passed versions of these bills. 1.9.20
Prevented Care: The Catholic Church Runs One-Third of Wisconsin Hospitals, Putting Many Reproductive Procedures Off-Limits
Wisconsin is more heavily reliant on Catholic health care than almost any other state. It is the only state where black women are more likely to deliver their babies in a Catholic institution than a non-Catholic one. And in 12 of 72 counties, the only hospitals within the borders are Catholic. In most ways, these Catholic hospitals, which treat one in every seven patients in the United States, differ from secular ones in name only. Yet, critics say, in a small but important corner of reproductive care, Catholic ethics can trump medical best practice, bishops can wield more influence than physicians, and patients can be denied care they desire or need. 12.18.19
When Catholic Hospitals Merge, Reproductive Services Can Change
The shift toward managed care in the mid-to-late 1990s and passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010 pressured health systems to contain costs, fueling mergers between Catholic and non-Catholic hospitals. In several instances in Wisconsin, previously secular hospitals have become subject to Catholic rules which prohibit hospitals from providing procedures the church deems immoral — including abortions, contraception, and sterilization. And even when one Catholic system is acquired by another, access to reproductive services can change. 12.18.19
National
The Coming Supreme Court Showdown over Birth Control
The Supreme Court is expected to announce soon that it will hear Trump v. Pennsylvania and Little Sisters of the Poor Saints Peter and Paul Home v. Pennsylvania, two consolidated cases examining the Trump administration’s rules allowing virtually any employer to deny birth control coverage to its employees. 1.14.20
5 Ways the Health Care Repeal Lawsuit Could Harm Women’s Health and Economic Security
The Texas v. United States ACA repeal lawsuit poses a significant risk to the health and economic security of millions of women and their families, including access to birth control and other preventive services. 1.14.20
Proposed Medicaid Block Grants and Spending Caps Threaten Enrollees’ Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights
Medicaid coverage enables millions of people to access affordable and high-quality sexual and reproductive health care services, but proposals from the Trump administration and conservative lawmakers threaten the integrity of the program. The most recent proposals would impose limits on federal spending for the program through block grants or per-capita spending caps that would jeopardize Medicaid enrollment and the scope and quality of the coverage offered. If applied, these changes to Medicaid would reduce sexual and reproductive health coverage and care. 12.18.19
Amy Klobuchar Lauds Falling Abortion Rates in the US: Campaign Week in Review
In an interview with Cosmopolitan magazine, US Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) pledged to support expanding contraception access as Republicans wage an assault on the ACA's birth control benefit. 12.13.19
News Archive
11.15.19-12.14.19
10.15.19-11.14.19
9.15.19-10.14.19
8.15.19-9.14.19
7.15.19-8.14.19
6.15.19-7.15.19
5.13.19-6.14.19
