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EVERYTHING
Pregnant Women and Their Babies Are Suffering and Dying in Post-Roe America
What: The AP has the dystopian details on what pregnant women face in America after Roe: “One woman miscarried in the lobby restroom of a Texas emergency room as front desk staff refused to check her in. Another woman learned that her fetus had no heartbeat at a Florida hospital, the day after a security guard turned her away from the facility. And in North Carolina, a woman gave birth in a car after an emergency room couldn’t offer an ultrasound. The baby later died.”
Why? Because pregnant patients have “become radioactive to emergency departments’ in states with extreme abortion restrictions, said Sara Rosenbaum, a George Washington University health law and policy professor. ‘They are so scared of a pregnant patient, that the emergency medicine staff won’t even look. They just want these people gone,’ Rosenbaum said.”
Why it matters: Women and babies will continue suffering and dying in America as they are denied care. And the Supreme Court on Wednesday hears arguments that could weaken a federal law requiring emergency rooms at least stabilize and transfer any pregnant patient that comes in.
Source: AP
What to Expect When You’re (Over 40)
What: OBGYN Sharon Malone explains to WBUR why she wrote her book, Grown Woman Talk: Your Guide to Getting and Staying Healthy: “I think that most women remember, and may even still have that book on their shelves, What to Expect When You’re Expecting. …Well, there’s no equivalent of that for women over 40. I wrote this book saying to myself, how about what to expect when you expect to live past 40? And I wrote it from the very beginning of explaining how to evaluate a medical system that has changed dramatically in the past 20 years. It is more confusing. The system is Byzantine. And I think even for the smartest of people, it is hard to figure out how to navigate the system.”
Why it matters: Malone is right – it is hard to figure out the system. She also details how research on women is way behind (but catching up).
Source: WBUR
ABORTION ACCESS
Biden Admin Announces New Federal Protections for Reproductive Health Records
What: The Biden administration issued new regulations that prevent medical records for reproductive health care from being used by law enforcement either against patients or providers, even if the patient traveled to another state for their care.
Why it matters: Several states that have extreme abortion bans seeks to penalize patients and providers for reproductive health care received in states where abortion is legal.
Source: CNN
METABOLISM + WEIGHT
TikTok to Start Restricting Weight Loss Content
What: TikTok is cracking down on creators who focus on weight loss, restricting content about “restrictive diets, ‘using medication or supplements for weight loss or muscle gain,’ or promoting weight loss products” to users who are 18 and up. But some users suspect the guidelines will have an effect on the content platform wide.
Why it matters: About a third of adults under 30 get news from TikTok, the hope is that these restrictions cut incentives for misinformation. (But others argue it is discriminatory against people with chronic diseases, like diabetes.)
Source: Business Insider
ONCOLOGY
Medicare and Additional Scans for Women With Dense Breast Tissue
What: The New York Times reports that Medicare sometimes won’t pay for additional breast scans, like an ultrasound or MRI, for women with dense breast tissue, even though mammograms can miss tumors in those situations.
Why it matters: Patients view the scans as routine, but then can end up with a hefty bill. There is disagreement among experts: A federal task force says there isn’t enough data from clinical trials to officially back additional screenings for women with dense breast tissue, but the American College of Radiology disagrees.
Source: New York Times
WELLNESS + BEAUTY
How to Avoid Bad Botox
What: Nineteen patients have been sickened by what appears to be counterfeit Botox injections, administered by unlicensed providers. NPR talks to experts about how to avoid that: “‘Anyone who is injecting a patient has to be licensed in the state where they perform the procedure,’ says Dr. Gregory Greco, the past president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. And he says patients in most states can and should do a little searching — whether through the health department, consumer affairs department or licensing boards — to find that license.”
Why it matters: It’s not just avoiding bad products like this case, other doctors in the piece say its important providers have training to know where the forehead artery is, for example, or how to treat potential complications.
Source: NPR
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