 Health Care |
Health Care |
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Louisiana poised to make abortion pills controlled substances |
Possession of abortion pills without a prescription could soon be illegal in Louisiana after Republicans in the state Legislature passed a first-of-its-kind bill that designates the pills as dangerous controlled substances. |
The bill categorizes them as Schedule IV, meaning possession would be illegal for anyone who doesn't have a prescription or is a licensed provider. Violators would be subject to up to five years in prison and thousands of dollars in fines. It would exempt from prosecution pregnant women who possess the pills "for her own consumption," but anyone who helps women get the pills would be at risk. What's next: The state Senate passed the bill by a 29-7 vote Thursday, days after it passed the state House. It now heads to the desk of Republican Gov. Jeff Landry, who is expected to sign it. Landry, an abortion opponent, has yet to officially weigh in on the measure. But in a post on a personal social media account earlier this week, he referenced Vice President Harris's criticism of the bill. "You know you're doing something right when @KamalaHarris criticizes you," Landry wrote on the social platform X. "This bill protects expectant mothers while also allowing these drugs to be prescribed to those with a valid prescription." What stakeholders say: - Abortion rights advocates said the legislation will create a chilling effect and adds more hurdles for prescribers and pharmacists.
- Lawmakers said the bill is aimed at stopping abortion drugs being used without physician oversight.
- Hundreds of doctors in the state have spoken out against the legislation, warning that it could lead to worsening outcomes in a state that has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the country.
Context: Abortion is almost entirely banned in Louisiana, meaning abortion pills are also illegal under the law. But women are still able to get the pills in the mail from providers in blue states protected by telehealth shield laws. Anti-abortion advocates say medication abortion is dangerous, despite much evidence that shows otherwise, and recently argued that point at the Supreme Court in an attempt to limit access to mifepristone. |
Welcome to The Hill's Health Care newsletter, we're Nathaniel Weixel and Joseph Choi — every week we follow the latest moves on how Washington impacts your health. |
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How policy will be impacting the health care sector this week and beyond: |
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Rep. Dwight Evans (D-Penn.) said on Thursday he suffered a "minor stroke" and will be out for six weeks as he recovers. Evans, who represents Philadelphia, said in a statement he received the diagnosis this week and did not realize at the time of the incident that he was having a stroke. He said the stroke should have no bearing on his ability to continue serving his constituents in the long term. "I wanted to let my constituents … |
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Long COVID research advocates slammed the Biden administration over "minimal funding" for long COVID in its budget request for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for fiscal year 2025. "The Long COVID Campaign, in partnership with Long COVID Moonshot and Patient Led Research Collaborative, has called on Congressional leaders to appropriate at least $1.2 Billion in FY25 funding for Long COVID research, with other patient … |
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Branch out with a different read: |
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Diagnoses of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, commonly known as ADHD, are becoming an "expanding public health concern," Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) researchers said in a new study. |
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Local and state headlines on health care: |
- State Board of Finance endorses proposed health insurance plan that would cut rates for current state employees, slightly raise rates for most retirees (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)
- Clues from bird flu's ground zero on dairy farms in the Texas panhandle (KFF Health News)
- State putting pressure on firms that manage Medicaid to help solve behavioral health access problems (Santa Fe New Mexican)
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Health news we've flagged from other outlets: |
- Despite setback, Neuralink's first brain-implant patient stays upbeat (The New York Times)
- Fresh scrutiny of post-Covid spending reignites yearslong tension over emergency stockpiles (Stat)
- Today, 'disability justice is reproductive justice' — but that hasn't always been the case (The 19th News)
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Most read stories on The Hill right now: |
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Former FBI Director James Comey weighed in on former President Trump’s criminal hush money case Wednesday, saying it was “much stronger” … Read more |
| Former President Trump is holding a rally in the Bronx borough of New York City on Thursday evening, making a foray into a Democratic Party … Read more |
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Opinions related to health submitted to The Hill: |
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