 Health Care |
Health Care |
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Costco joins abortion pill discourse |
The major bulk retailer has not previously dispensed the drug mifepristone, but last week it announced it would not apply to become a certified distributor. Anti-abortion groups are claiming a win. |
Costco delved into the abortion debate last week when it announced it would not begin selling the abortion pill Mifepristone, citing a lack of demand among its customers. "Our position at this time not to sell mifepristone, which has not changed, is based on the lack of demand from our members and other patients, who we understand generally have the drug dispensed by their medical providers," a Costco spokesperson told The Hill. Although the announcement effectively amounted to the company changing nothing about its current business, anti-abortion groups like the conservative religious coalition Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) took it as a victory and said they would look to turn up the pressure on other major retailers. ADF legal counsel Michael Ross said in a statement, "We applaud Costco for doing the right thing by its shareholders and resisting activist calls to sell abortion drugs." Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America's Emily Erin Davis commended the move as a clear message that the wholesaler "won't be complicit in the abortion industry's agenda to sell dangerous abortion drugs." Democratic Sen. Patty Murray (Wash.) characterized Costco's announcement as giving in to far-right pressure. "I am deeply alarmed by news reports that Costco is refusing to sell safe, effective, and legal medication for no other reason than to appease the politics of anti-abortion fanatics," Murray said in a statement following the news. "I refuse to stand by and allow far-right extremists to bully major corporations and dictate what medicine women can or cannot get access to," added the senator. "I am demanding that Costco immediately reverse course—follow the science and the facts, not the demands of far-right anti-abortion extremists." |
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| How policy will be impacting the health care sector this week and beyond: |
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Texas health officials on Monday declared the measles outbreak that began in West Texas earlier this year is now over after more than 700 cases were confirmed. The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) said that as of Aug. 18, 762 measles cases were confirmed since January, with the majority of infections occurring in children and most cases involving people who were unvaccinated or had unknown vaccination statuses. … |
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Confidence in the government’s ability to ensure food safety in the U.S. has hit a new low — a drop driven largely by distrust among Democrats, according to a poll released Monday. Gallup’s latest survey of consumer habits found 53 percent of Americans said they have at least a “fair amount” of faith in federal regulators maintaining a safe food supply. Confidence had hovered around 70 percent from 2007 … |
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The return of earmarks to the annual appropriations bills has sparked a battle among Republicans on Capitol Hill, pitting fiscal hawks against members of the Appropriations Committees and their allies. |
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Branch out with a different read: |
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Inside the fight to stop US from destroying $10M of contraceptives |
Lawmakers and activists in Europe and the United States are scrambling to stop the State Department from destroying nearly $10 million worth of contraceptives funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The contraceptives have been sitting in a warehouse in Belgium for months after President Trump froze all U.S foreign aid and shuttered USAID earlier this year. "They are not even close to being … |
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Local and state headlines on health care: |
- As Medicaid cuts loom, North Carolina shows the stakes (Washington Post)
- Virginia abortion funds see sharp uptick in patients both in and out of state (Virginia Mercury)
- Abortion pill campaign targets rural West Virginia, Kentucky gas stations (West Virginia Watch)
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Health news we've flagged from other outlets: |
- VA rescinds weeks of parental leave — even for some giving birth this week (Axios)
- Amid growing 'scandal' of elder homelessness, health care groups aim to help (NPR)
- His custom cancer therapy is in the freezer. He might not get it in time (The Washington Post)
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Opinions related to health submitted to The Hill: |
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