Reproductive Health News and Research

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Viewpoints: Santorum on repeal; Ariz. Republic endorses Romney; How Catholic church almost accepted birth control

I'll submit legislation to repeal ObamaCare, and on day one issue an executive order ending related regulatory obligations on the states. I'll work with Congress to replace ObamaCare with competitive insurance choices to improve quality and limit the costs of health care, while protecting those with uninsurable health conditions.

28 Feb 2012

Woman barred from House contraception hearing testifies at Dems' event

A woman barred by Republican Rep. Darrell Issa, R- Calif., last week from testifying at a hearing on contraception and religion starred in a House Democratic hearing on Capitol Hill Thursday, saying women are "energized" on the contraception issue.

24 Feb 2012

Va. considering new abortion ultrasound bill after more controversial bill pulled

Fallout over Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell's decision to pull support for a controversial ultrasound abortion bill continues as a similar piece of legislation, which would require a less-invasive ultrasound, winds through that state's legislature.

24 Feb 2012

International Microbicides Conference to take place from April 15-18

The biennial International Microbicides Conference is the premier gathering for those working on new approaches to HIV prevention and this year's conference in Sydney, Australia will place a strong emphasis on the role of community in both research and implementation of scientific findings. The conference will take place from April 15-18 at the Sydney Exhibition and Conference Centre located on the Darling Harbour waterfront.

23 Feb 2012

Obama contraceptive rule reverberates through health care marketplace

Before the federal rule was advanced, the policies put in place by various states allowed employers room to manuever, The Washington Post reports. Meanwhile, the insurance industry fears it may be left holding the bag for this requirement, and the New York Times explores the market share of Catholic hospitals.

22 Feb 2012

First Edition: February 21, 2012

Today's health policy headlines include reports about how the Supreme Court's consideration of the health law could prolong the fight over the sweeping measure.

21 Feb 2012

WHO confirms recommendations regarding HIV, female hormonal contraceptives after review of studies

"A stakeholder consultation convened by the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva has reviewed recent epidemiological studies related to HIV transmission and acquisition by women using hormonal contraceptives," a UNAIDS press statement reports.

18 Feb 2012

More than half of women with SLE and RA have fewer children than desired

New research shows that more than half of women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) have fewer children than desired. While patient choice has some influence on the smaller family size, findings published today in Arthritis Care & Research, a journal of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR), suggest that higher rates of infertility and miscarriage may also impact the number of offspring born to women with these chronic conditions.

16 Feb 2012

Study finds low rate of contraception among sexually active young Latinos

Half of the young adult Latino men and women responding to a survey in rural Oregon acknowledge not using regular effective contraception - despite expressing a desire to avoid pregnancy, according to a new Oregon State University study.

16 Feb 2012

Many women 'want and need' gift of reproductive health this Valentine's Day

"This Valentine's Day, perhaps it's time to celebrate with a gift many of the world's women desperately want and need: reproductive health," Robert Engelman, president of the Worldwatch Institute, writes in this Huffington Post "Global Motherhood" opinion piece.

15 Feb 2012

Recognizing Global Fund's integration of reproductive health into focus on AIDS, TB, malaria

Noting the successes of the first 10 years of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, as well as the funding challenges it faces moving forward, Elisha Dunn-Georgiou, vice president of advocacy at Population Action International, writes in an opinion piece in GlobalPost's "Global Pulse" blog that the Fund "has always upheld the idea that their work contributes to achievement of all of the health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)" and "always accepted and considered proposals that include reproductive, maternal, and child health interventions, when countries could demonstrate that they would have an impact on AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria."

13 Feb 2012

Examining Komen's history with Planned Parenthood; Rep. Blackburn wants expanded Planned Parenthood investigation

ProPublica examines Komen's shifting history with Planned Parenthood. In other news, Planned Parenthood's services for men are examined and a Republican congresswoman is asking for a larger investigation of the organization.

12 Feb 2012

Viewpoints: Political furor on contraceptive policy; Confusing estimates of Medicare's costs

The political furor over President Obama's birth-control mandate continues to grow, even among those for whom contraception poses no moral qualms, and one needn't be a theologian to understand why. The country is being exposed to the raw political control that is the core of the Obama health-care plan, and Americans are seeing clearly for the first time how this will violate pluralism and liberty.

9 Feb 2012

Komen Foundation works to regain balance in the wake of Planned Parenthood funding flap

News outlets parse different angles of this story -- which broke last week -- including how the Web and social media affected it and how Komen is working to rebuild its donor list.

7 Feb 2012

Scientists search gene alterations in three-parent kids

Researchers from Australia want to find out if using the DNA of three parents will prevent children inheriting life-threatening diseases. They add that if the technique proves successful in preventing the transfer of mitochondrial DNA mutations from mothers to babies, then laws on the use of embryos will need to be changed to allow the procedure.

6 Feb 2012

Republican win in 2012 election could spell end of international family planning programs

"If a Republican becomes president, ... say goodbye to international programs providing birth control to women in desperately poor countries such as Liberia," senior contributing writer Michelle Goldberg writes in this Daily Beast opinion piece.

4 Feb 2012

Viewpoints: Censoring flu research; Assailing Komen's move to cut Planned Parenthood funding

In December, the National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity made an unprecedented request: it asked the editors of the journals Nature and Science not to publish certain details in two papers describing experiments in which scientists created a highly transmissible form of the deadly H5N1 influenza virus. ... Such caution, though well intentioned, is misplaced.

3 Feb 2012

New research gains increased respect for contraceptive method

Imagine a contraceptive that could, with one or two painless 15-minute non-surgical treatments, provide months of protection from pregnancy. And imagine that the equipment needed were already in physical therapists' offices around the world.

31 Jan 2012

Comprehensive policy package based on research needed to stem abortion figures

"The astounding thing about the global abortion debate is not that some people have deeply held views about what a pregnancy is and when a human existence begins" but that "policymakers continue to ignore carefully amassed information about the actual outcome of programs and laws related to sexuality and reproduction," Marianne Møllmann, senior policy adviser with Amnesty International's International Secretariat, writes in this Guardian opinion piece.

25 Jan 2012

Virtual network of experts to work together to prevent preterm birth

The March of Dimes, along with its partners, are giving experts in the field of preterm birth prevention an opportunity to learn from each other and to work together to bring the nation's preterm birth rate under 10 percent and give more babies a healthy start.

24 Jan 2012