Latest news with #abortionRights
Washington Post
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Wisconsin Supreme Court allows abortion to continue in state
MADISON, Wis. — A divided Wisconsin Supreme Court on Wednesday allowed abortions to continue in the state, blocking a 19th century law that for a time effectively banned the procedure in nearly all instances. The ruling is a victory for abortion rights advocates — who helped flip the elected court's ideological makeup in 2023 — and puts protections for the procedure on firmer footing. It represents a setback for abortion opponents in the swing state, who had hoped Wisconsin would join the list of states to limit or ban the procedure after Roe v. Wade was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022.
CBS News
29-06-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Gov. Healey calls same-sex marriage and abortion access "non-negotiable" in Massachusetts
Ten years after the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage nationwide and three years after it overturned Roe v. Wade, Gov. Maura Healey said both topics are "non-negotiable" in Massachusetts and vowed to protect them. On the 10th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling legalizing same-sex marriage nationally, one of the nation's most prominent gay politicians, Healey, was asked if she thought that right was secure in the face of a movement among some Republican lawmakers at the state level to ask the court to reverse its position, a possibility mentioned by conservative Justices Thomas and Alito. "Non-issue here in Massachusetts" "It's a non-issue here in Massachusetts," she said. "Marriage is marriage, whether you're gay or not, and that's the law here. It's going to continue to be that way." Healey said the same about abortion rights in Massachusetts. "This is the third anniversary of the Supreme Court's decision overturning Roe v. Wade, and I'll also just say that abortion rights, abortion access, access to reproductive health care, is non-negotiable. In Massachusetts, we're going to continue to protect that right, continue to protect patients, providers and others who need that care," Healey said. Massachusetts energy costs In the meantime, Healey says she's intently focused on curbing the high cost of living in Massachusetts, most recently with legislation aimed at bringing down energy costs. "We need to get as much energy into the region as possible. I've been saying this for years, and I don't really care what form of energy that is, I just want more supply so that we can drive costs down," she says. Does that mean Healey is dropping her past opposition to new gas pipelines? "We already have gas coming in, and I support that. It's very important that we continue to build out solar, that we bring wind in. We need to do everything. There is a reason that the states, you know, the states in this country that are have the fastest growth in wind and solar, Texas, Louisiana, you know, so called red states, because this is where we need to go. Everybody needs energy. We're consuming so much energy now with our devices, with AI coming.... It's why I convened all the New England governors and the state of New York, along with the Canadian premiers recently, to have a discussion about how we can bring more energy into the region from Canada." Antisemitism in Massachusetts Healey also claimed she had "immediately" pressured officials at the Massachusetts Teachers Association to remove antisemitic material from a teacher "resource" section of their website when it became public a few months ago. "I had direct conversations with union officials asking them to remove that from the website. I've also said, because we've seen a rise in antisemitism around this country, and even incidents here in Massachusetts, there is no place for anti-Semitism. I don't tolerate it, and we all need to work together to speak out to denounce that kind of bigotry and hatred and racism and xenophobia in all forms." Healey also discussed tax policy, vowing to revisit raising the amount of wealth exempted from the estate tax and keep an eye on the impact of the income surtax on business. You can watch part one of our two-part interview with the governor here on-demand; join us next Sunday morning at 8:30 a.m. when Healey directly rebuts the criticisms of her potential Republican challengers in the 2026 election, on the Sunday edition of "Keller At Large."
Washington Post
28-06-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Justice Kavanaugh explains what the injunctions ruling won't change
Landmark Supreme Court decisions sometimes don't have the results partisans fear or hope for. The 2010 Citizens United decision loosening restrictions on campaign spending was expected to help Republicans, but now Democrats spend more on political ads. The 2022 Dobbs decision finding that there is no constitutional right to abortion has not reduced the number of abortions.
CBS News
26-06-2025
- Health
- CBS News
Supreme Court lets South Carolina block Medicaid funds from Planned Parenthood
Washington — The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected Planned Parenthood's challenge to South Carolina's attempt to bar the organization from participating in its Medicaid program, clearing the way for the state to strip the organization of Medicaid funds. The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in the case of Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic to find that Planned Parenthood and a patient cannot sue the state of South Carolina to enforce a provision of the Medicaid Act that aims to ensure a patient can obtain medical care from the provider of their choosing. Justice Neil Gorsuch delivered the opinion for the court. The three liberal justices, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, were in dissent. The court's conservative majority reversed a decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit that allowed Planned Parenthood's lawsuit against state officials to move forward. It is likely to pave the way for more states to exclude Planned Parenthood from their Medicaid programs, a move that anti-abortion rights have been pushing for several years. Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic The question before the court was a narrow one, involving whether a Medicaid beneficiary could sue to enforce their ability to seek care from the qualified and willing provider of their choosing, known as the any-qualified-provider requirement. The legal wrangling over South Carolina's attempt to stop public dollars from going to a Planned Parenthood affiliate in the state began in 2018, four years before the Supreme Court overturned Roe. v. Wade. In South Carolina, abortion is banned after six weeks gestation, and Planned Parenthood provides abortion services outside of Medicaid only as allowed under state law. Additionally, federal law bars Medicaid from paying for abortions except in cases of rape or incest, or to save the life of the mother. But seven years ago, South Carolina's Republican governor, Henry McMaster, issued an executive order that directed the state's health department to deem abortion providers unqualified to provide family-planning services under Medicaid and terminate their enrollment agreements. In response, the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services notified Planned Parenthood South Atlantic that its provider agreements were being cancelled because it was no longer qualified to provide medical services to Medicaid beneficiaries. The affiliate has clinics in Charleston and Columbia, and offers prenatal and postpartum services, along with physical exams and screenings for cancer and other health conditions. In the wake of the state's decision to boot Planned Parenthood from its Medicaid program, Julie Edwards, a patient who received medical services from the organization, and Planned Parenthood filed a lawsuit under federal civil rights law to challenge the move. Edwards argued that South Carolina's termination of Planned Parenthood's agreement violated her right to choose her provider under the Medicaid Act. A federal district judge ruled in favor of Planned Parenthood, finding that South Carolina likely violated the any-qualified-provider provision when it excluded Planned Parenthood from its Medicaid program. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit ultimately allowed the suit to proceed and prevented South Carolina from keeping Planned Parenthood out of its Medicaid program. The dispute before the Supreme Court did not involve abortion, but it came to the high court amid a push by several Republican-led states to block Planned Parenthood from receiving Medicaid funds.
Washington Post
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Three years after Roe's overturn, Democrats less focused on abortion
Three years after the fall of Roe v. Wade turned abortion rights into one of Democrats' most powerful rallying cries, the party has largely shifted its focus to other fights, as some acknowledge the difficulty of battling President Donald Trump on the issue. Democrats say they still view championing abortion rights as an important way to persuade centrist voters and their base to vote for them, and plan to bring it up in battleground races, including this year's governor's elections in Virginia and New Jersey. They will mark Tuesday's anniversary with speeches, rallies and other public events, while Trump and his party — still showing discomfort discussing abortion — have been quieter about it.
