Julie Rovner

House Passes Bill That Would Ban Abortions After 20 Weeks

Julie Rovner — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:36:00 +0000

The House has passed one of the most far-reaching abortion bills in decades. But it's unlikely to ever become law.

By a mostly party-line vote Tuesday of 228-196, lawmakers passed the "Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act," which would ban nearly all abortions starting 20 weeks after fertilization.

"At 20 weeks maybe sooner, the baby feels pain," said physician and Rep. John Fleming, R-La., on the House floor. "And so I would just submit to you today Mr.

To Find Out How The Health Law Affects You, Ask The President

Julie Rovner — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 06:59:00 +0000

Call it the Affordable Care Act, call it Obamacare, call it whatever you want — it's coming. And soon. In less than four months people without health insurance will be able to start signing up for coverage that begins Jan. 1.

A lot has been said about the law, most of it not that understandable.

Judge Reluctantly Approves Government Plan For Morning-After Pill

Julie Rovner — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 17:38:00 +0000

An obviously unhappy Judge Edward Korman has approved the Obama administration's proposal to make just one formulation of the morning-after birth control pill available over the counter without age restrictions.

But in a testily worded six-page memorandum, the federal district judge made it clear he is not particularly pleased with the outcome.

Administration's Plan For Morning-After Pill Pleases No One

Julie Rovner — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 22:20:00 +0000

Reaction was swift to the Obama administration's announcement Monday night that it was dropping a long-running legal battle to keep age restrictions on one type of the morning-after birth control pill.

But like just about everything else in this decade-long controversy, the latest decision has pleased just about no one.

To be clear, the administration is not proposing that all forms of the drug be made available over the counter without age restrictions.

In fact, in it

Court Says Some Morning-After Pills Must Be Available OTC Now

Julie Rovner — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 21:03:00 +0000

A federal appeals court has dealt the Obama administration yet another blow in its quest to keep at least some age restrictions on the sale of emergency contraceptive pills.

In a three-paragraph order, a three-judge panel for the United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit ruled that although the government's appeal of a lower court decision removin

Maternity Coverage Sought for Young Women On Parent's Plan

Julie Rovner — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 19:53:00 +0000

Young women covered by a parent's health insurance don't necessarily get maternity coverage.

Administration Touts Competition In Insurance Exchanges

Julie Rovner — Thu, 30 May 2013 21:28:00 +0000

The Obama administration is countering criticism that the new health insurance exchanges will be lacking in competition, though it's doing so a bit quietly.

At a White House briefing Thursday for health reporters, in which senior administration health officials spoke on the condition that they not be named, and in a memo, the administration insisted that in most states at least, competition will

Abortion Opponents Try to Spin Murder Case Into Legislation

Julie Rovner — Thu, 23 May 2013 21:58:00 +0000

As predicted, abortion opponents on Capitol Hill are wasting no time in their efforts to turn publicity over the recent murder conviction of abortion provider Kermit Gosnell to their legislative advantage.

Their latest goal: a federal ban on most abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy.

Rep.

Boomer Housemates Have More Fun

Julie Rovner — Wed, 22 May 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Today more than 1 in every 3 baby boomers — that huge glut of people born between 1948 and 1964 — is unmarried. And those unmarried boomers are disproportionately women.

Swell Of Goodwill For First Medicare Chief Confirmed Since 2004

Julie Rovner — Thu, 16 May 2013 19:12:00 +0000

When the Senate voted Tuesday to make Marilyn Tavenner the official administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, it was the first time the world's greatest deliberative body had approved someone to head the huge health agency since 2004.

That's right, you have to go way back to the Bush administration to find Dr.

Cloning, Stem Cells Long Mired In Legislative Gridlock

Julie Rovner — Thu, 16 May 2013 07:04:00 +0000

The news that U.S.

A Sharper Abortion Debate After Gosnell Verdict

Julie Rovner — Tue, 14 May 2013 15:49:00 +0000

The murder conviction in Philadelphia of abortion provider Dr.

Judge Denies Administration's Request To Delay Plan-B Ruling

Julie Rovner — Fri, 10 May 2013 19:24:00 +0000

The U.S.

Why A Slowdown In Health Spending Is Starting To Look Real

Julie Rovner — Mon, 06 May 2013 20:46:00 +0000

So you know all that talk about how the boatload of money going to health care will bankrupt the nation if something isn't done soon?

Well, it turns out that while politicians were bickering, the problem started taking care of itself. Well, a little bit.

While not solved, the growth in health spending has definitely slowed. That's the consensus of a series of studies out in the past few week.

Women's Health Groups Angered By Morning-After Pill Moves

Julie Rovner — Thu, 02 May 2013 21:14:00 +0000

The administration's actions this week on emergency contraception have left many women's health groups sputtering with anger.

But what really has some of the President Obama's usual allies irritated is the fact that the moves are in direct contrast to speeches he made in just the past week.

Recall that on Tuesday the Food and Drug Administration defied a federal judge's order to make the morning-after pill available over-the-counter to women of all ages by approving a mo

Second Thoughts On Medicaid From Oregon's Unique Experiment

Julie Rovner — Wed, 01 May 2013 21:10:00 +0000

Two years ago, a landmark study found that having Medicaid health insurance makes a positive difference in people's lives.

Backers of the program have pointed to that study time and again in their push to encourage states to expand the program as part of the federal health law.

Now the researchers have dug a little deeper into their data, and the

FDA OKs Prescription-Free Plan B Pill For Women 15 And Up

Julie Rovner — Wed, 01 May 2013 00:10:00 +0000

In an effort to find a compromise for a politically fraught issue, the Food and Drug Administration has approved a proposal to make the emergency contraceptive pill Plan B more available to some younger teens without a prescription and to older women by moving the medication out from behind the pharmacy counter.

But the proposal stops short of the full over-the-counter, no-age-restriction order

Family Doctors Consider Dropping Birth Control Training Rule

Julie Rovner — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 07:29:00 +0000

One of the more popular provisions of the federal health law requires that women be given much freer access to prescription methods of birth control.

Philadelphia Case Exposes Deep Rift In Abortion Debate

Julie Rovner — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 19:43:00 +0000

This is the sixth week of the trial of Dr.

Why Obama's Budget Could Make Health Waves

Julie Rovner — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 14:06:00 +0000

OK, the conventional wisdom about the budget President Obama sent to Congress yesterday is that's irrelevant.

It's two months late, after all, and the House and Senate have already approved their own spending blueprints for fiscal 2014.

But here's why it matters when it comes to health.

First of all, the Congressional budget process isn't exactly done.