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Hospital merger in Washington state stokes fears about Catholic limits on care

The proposed merger of a well-regarded secular hospital system and a larger Roman Catholic system in Washington state has triggered new alarms about religious restrictions on patients' access to care.

3 Aug 2020

COVID-19 may increase risk of blot cots in women who are pregnant or taking birth control pills

COVID-19 may increase the risk of blot cots in women who are pregnant or taking estrogen with birth control or hormone replacement therapy, according to a new manuscript published in the Endocrine Society's journal, Endocrinology.

29 Jul 2020

Cost barriers prevent US women from using their preferred method of contraception

More than one in five women at risk of an unplanned pregnancy in the U.S. would use a different method of contraception if cost were not a factor, says a new study from the Texas Policy Evaluation Project (TxPEP) published in Contraception X.

14 Jul 2020

Rochester community initiative increases adolescent use of long-acting reversible contraception

A new study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology shows that a University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) community outreach initiative has helped adolescents in Rochester adopt long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) at a rate far higher than the U.S. overall.

9 Jul 2020

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: ‘Open the schools, close the bars’

How to safely open the nation's schools this fall has become the latest spat in attempting to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.

9 Jul 2020

High Court allows employers to opt out of ACA’s mandate on birth control coverage

The Supreme Court Wednesday settled — at least for now — a decade's worth of litigation over the women's health provisions of the Affordable Care Act, ruling 7-2 that employers with a "religious or moral objection" to providing contraceptive coverage to their employees may opt out without penalty.

8 Jul 2020

Americans with limited birth control access more likely to turn to the internet for abortion information

Residents of states with limited access to contraceptives and high rates of unplanned pregnancies are more likely to turn to the internet for information about abortion. These are the findings of a new study of Google search data across all 50 states by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley.

22 May 2020

Despite their safety, birth control pills are associated with several side effects

Birth control pills are an effective and safe form of birth control; however, they are associated with a number of side effects, including mood alterations.

20 May 2020

Woman's genetic make-up may play a role in weight gain from birth control

A woman's genetic make-up may cause her to gain weight when using a popular form of birth control, according to a study from researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

12 May 2020

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Blowing the whistle on Trump team’s COVID policies

Those working inside the Trump administration are getting so frustrated with the response to the COVID-19 pandemic that they are going public.

8 May 2020

Study: It is hard to determine women’s menopausal age

Is it possible to investigate menopausal age, or not? In more than one in three women aged 50, the body provides no clear answer about the menopause, a University of Gothenburg study shows. Increased use of hormonal intrauterine devices and contraceptive pills are the cause.

9 Feb 2020

Robotic search for drugs that block sperm motility

The hunt for the first male contraceptive pill is on, and scientists at Dundee University may have the needed tool to find it – a robotic screening system.

29 Jan 2020

Blood tests can predict timing of menopause for women

Blood tests could replace menstrual periods as a gauge for when a women is nearing menopause, according to new research published in the Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

22 Jan 2020

New blood test more accurately predicts the final menstrual period

Researchers in the United States have demonstrated that a new blood test could be a superior marker of the time to menopause than bleeding patterns, or previously available tests.

22 Jan 2020

University of Chicago Medicine vascular surgeon offers tips for healthy arteries and veins

Our vascular system is our body's unsung hero. Arteries transport nourishing oxygen and nutrient-rich blood throughout tissues; veins carry the deoxygenated, waste-filled blood back to the heart, where the process begins anew.

8 Jan 2020

Majority of people do not want religious doctrine dictating healthcare choices, study reveals

A small minority of Americans surveyed consider the religious affiliation of the hospitals that treat them, but a majority said they didn't want religious doctrine dictating their healthcare choices, according to a study by researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

2 Jan 2020

A 'once a month' birth control pill

Birth control pills in their present form need to be taken once a day each day for the whole menstrual cycle. Other options such as Intra-Uterine devices (IUDs) or implanted progesterone offer a longer coverage, but most women prefer the pills due to their reliability and cheaper, easier and safer usage profile.

5 Dec 2019

Birth control pills shrink hypothalamus

Birth control pills have been found to reduce a part of the brain that is associated with controlling the sex drive finds a new study. The study results are being presented as a preview in the annual conference of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).