Pro-Life News

Trump administration policies are a top target for abortion rights supporters, who want President-elect Joe Biden to immediately reverse what they call "gag rules." "The harm that has been done by the Trump administration — the harm that has impacted a lot of low-income and rural communities around access to basic family planning services — has been horrific," said Alexis McGill Johnson, the president of Planned Parenthood. Read more......

Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin was in federal court Monday challenging three state abortion restrictions that the organization believes unconstitutionally limits access to care. If successful, the lawsuit would broaden the ability to have an abortion in Wisconsin, particularly in rural areas of the state, where the procedure is not available. Planned Parenthood provides abortion care at three of its 21 locations in Wisconsin: Madison; Milwaukee; and Sheboygan. Tanya Atkinson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin, said deciding to start a family, delay becoming a parent, or end a pregnancy are personal decisions. Read more......

With the Texas Legislature set to convene in five weeks, an influential Senate committee met to preview an aggressive agenda of bills designed to outlaw, or at least severely limit, abortion in Texas. The Senate State Affairs Committee, the first stop of abortion-related legislation, can expect to be the catalyst for a concerted effort to "protect innocent human life," said Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola. "We hope to pass a whole lot of pro-life legislation this session," said Hughes, chairman of the committee. Read more......

U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro promised "this is the last year" House spending bills will block federal funds from being used to pay for abortion in a hearing as she prepares to take leadership over all federal spending in January. DeLauro, D-3, has previously stated that she wants to repeal the Hyde amendment, which has applied this prohibition for 44 years with bipartisan support. But removing the amendment from spending bills will require the agreement of the Senate and Republicans, who may hold the Senate after the Georgia run-off elections, are sure to oppose the change. U.S. Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., predicted that DeLauro would be unable to repeal Hyde even if Democrats win the Senate...

Senate Bill 260 passed the Ohio House 54-30 after Republicans blocked debate. If signed by the governor, it would ban the use of telemedicine for medication abortions by requiring physicians to be physically present when both pills are taken. Doctors who violate the law could face felony charges. Republicans and Ohio Right to Life say this would protect women seeking abortions. But Democrats and Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio say it would only make things more complicated and more expensive. Read more......

The Trump administration said that it would withhold $200 million in federal health care funding from California because the state requires that insurance providers cover abortions, escalating a highly politicized battle. Earlier this year, the administration warned California that it could lose federal funding over its 2014 regulation mandating that employers and private insurance plans pay for abortions. The Department of Health and Human Services determined that the state was violating a federal law, known as the Weldon Amendment, prohibiting discrimination against insurers and health care providers that decline to offer abortion services — a reversal of the Obama administration’s...

Both the state Senate and House of Representatives overwhelmingly rejected Gov. Charlie Baker’s amendment to abortion rights legislation included in the budget this week, in a move cheered by local abortion rights supporters. The abortion provisions, based on proposed abortion rights legislation known as the ROE Act, establish an affirmative right to abortion in state law, eliminate the parental consent requirement for abortions for 16- and 17-year-olds, and would allow abortions after 24 weeks in the case of lethal fetal abnormalities or when a fetus is incapable of sustained life outside of the uterus, as well as to preserve a patient’s life or physical or mental health. Read more......

Lawmakers are on the verge of expanding access to abortion in Massachusetts over objections from Gov. Charlie Baker about sections of their proposal involving minors seeking the procedure and abortions after 24 weeks of pregnancy. With most House Democrats banding together, the House voted 107-46 on Monday to override the Republican governor's Christmas Eve veto of legislation (H 5179) reforming reproductive rights. The Senate adjourned Monday afternoon without tackling the matter, but plans to take up the bill on Tuesday, when it is expected to complete the override after voting several times in recent weeks to advance the bill. Read more......

What started with then-Attorney General Mike DeWine's 2015 investigation into Planned Parenthood ended with the Republican governor signing a bill that requires fetal remains be buried or cremated. Senate Bill 27 requires any aborted zygote, blastocyte, embryo or fetus to be buried or cremated. Any woman who obtains an abortion in Ohio would be informed prior to the procedure that she can choose the final disposition of the fetal remains. If she doesn't choose a location, the abortion facility would select a location and pay for the burial or cremation. Read more...  ...