Category Archives: National news

Where the abortions are happening now

Posted on October 7, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Fascinating. A new report reveals the reality of the United States post-Dobbs: abortion deserts, especially concentrated in the southeast, forcing women to flee to nearby states that provide care. “The Monthly Abortion Provision Study shows that many states that are … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Where the abortions are happening now

Lots of people will not get that latest COVID shot

Posted on September 27, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Sadly not a big surprise. We could move this at the margins, but not as long as any part of government is in Republican control. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends new covid-19 booster vaccines for all — … Continue reading →

Posted in National news, Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Time for your next COVID shot

Posted on September 17, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I’m ready. The U.S. approved updated COVID-19 vaccines Monday, hoping to rev up protection against the latest coronavirus strains and blunt any surge this fall and winter. The Food and Drug Administration decision opens the newest shots from Moderna and … Continue reading →

Posted in National news, Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

The fight over abortion access in New Mexico

Posted on September 13, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Great story from the AP. The sanctuary in Grace Covenant Reformed Church was packed. People stood shoulder to shoulder wherever they could — near the stained glass windows depicting scenes from the Bible, behind the neatly lined rows of chairs … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

It’s going to be a challenge tracking changes in the maternal mortality rate

Posted on August 18, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

We expect maternal deaths to rise post-Dobbs, especially in states that have effectively banned abortions. But collecting the data to document what’s happening will not be easy. Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year, doctors have warned … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on It’s going to be a challenge tracking changes in the maternal mortality rate

Fifth Circuit rejects some mifepristone restrictions, upholds others

Posted on August 17, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Typical. A Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals panel handed down a decision Wednesday batting down challenges to the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) initial approval of abortion drug mifepristone, but reinstituting restrictions that the agency has lifted in recent years. … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters, National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Fifth Circuit rejects some mifepristone restrictions, upholds others

Over the counter birth control pill approved

Posted on July 14, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

A big deal, and a long time coming. The Food and Drug Administration approved the first ever over-the-counter birth control pill in the United States Thursday, a huge advancement in contraceptive accessibility amid an ever more restrictive abortion landscape. “Approval … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Over the counter birth control pill approved

The Jovita Idar quarter

Posted on July 9, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Cool. As part of a series honoring women in history, the U.S. Mint will release a new quarter in mid-August depicting early 1900s South Texas journalist-activist Jovita Idar. Often associated with her early life in Laredo, she lived her last 25 … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on The Jovita Idar quarter

Malaria

Posted on July 8, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Time for something new to worry about. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is warning doctors and public health officials about a handful of locally acquired cases of malaria. There hasn’t been a case of malaria caught locally … Continue reading →

Posted in National news, Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Texas to invest in microchips

Posted on June 19, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Cool. Leaders in the semiconductor industry and their Texas allies were alarmed by supply chain disruptions to the sector during the pandemic. Now the state is seeking to turn the lessons learned in the past three years into an opportunity. … Continue reading →

Posted in National news, That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Please get an mpox vaccine if you are at risk

Posted on June 13, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s avoid a summer surge. On the heels of a cluster of new mpox infections in Chicago this month, the CDC is urging at-risk populations to get fully vaccinated. One year ago Thursday, the Centers for Disease Control released its … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The national cannabis oversupply problem

Posted on May 14, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

A fascinating look at a big problem in the cannabis market. Along the West Coast, which dominated U.S. marijuana production long before states began to legalize it, producers face what many call the failed economics of legal pot. There is … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The national cannabis oversupply problem

FDA set to approve over the counter birth control pill

Posted on May 12, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Good. An influential advisory panel recommended that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approve an oral contraceptive pill for over-the-counter use without an age restriction. While hormonal birth control is available without a prescription in many other countries, this medication, … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Feds rebuke hospitals that didn’t do emergency abortions

Posted on May 6, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Relevant to our interests. Two hospitals that refused to provide an emergency abortion to a pregnant woman who was experiencing premature labor put her life in jeopardy and violated federal law, a first-of-its-kind investigation by the federal government has found. … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Feds rebuke hospitals that didn’t do emergency abortions

Feds take steps to protect abortion health data

Posted on April 13, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The Biden administration released a raft of proposals related to keeping abortion-related health information private Wednesday morning. Some of the measures are specifically targeted to shield providers from prosecution, so far the primary way red states are seeking to … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Feds take steps to protect abortion health data

Founder of that voter roll maintenance program that election denialists hate has stepped down

Posted on March 15, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I’m sure this will calm everyone down and restore the faith everyone once had in this program. Right? David Becker, an election law advocate who helped create the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), is vacating his position on its board … Continue reading →

Posted in National news, That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

What does Florida have against bloggers?

Posted on March 7, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

These are the questions we must ask ourselves these days. Florida Sen. Jason Brodeur (R-Lake Mary) wants bloggers who write about Gov. Ron DeSantis, Attorney General Ashley Moody, and other members of the Florida executive cabinet or legislature to register … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on What does Florida have against bloggers?

A bigger House

Posted on February 26, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Proposals like this come along every few years. The size of the House of Representatives hasn’t kept up with population growth for a very long time—in fact, it hasn’t even tried to—but one congressman has a solution. Democratic Rep. Earl … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on A bigger House

FDA suggests annual COVID booster

Posted on January 26, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I like the idea of this, which is to make COVID shots simpler and thus hopefully more likely to be taken, but it seems to be more nuanced than that. The US Food and Drug Administration wants to simplify the … Continue reading →

Posted in National news, Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on FDA suggests annual COVID booster

Emergency miscarriage care

Posted on January 19, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s another thing most of us have not had to think much about in the past when abortion was generally legal. [A uterine aspiration (also commonly known as a D&C) or the removal of tissue from the uterus via suction] is a … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Emergency miscarriage care

Mifepristone can now be offered at retail pharmacies

Posted on January 4, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Good news, for at least some of the country. For the first time, retail pharmacies, from corner drugstores to major chains like CVS and Walgreens, will be allowed to offer abortion pills in the United States under a regulatory change … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Mifepristone can now be offered at retail pharmacies

Ike Dike authorization officially passed

Posted on December 27, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Took a roundabout route to get there, but here we are. With the stroke of a pen, President Joe Biden authorized a $34 billion proposal to build a massive storm surge protection system on the Texas coast and around Galveston … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Electoral Count Act included in must-pass budget bill

Posted on December 21, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

It’s not nearly enough to shore up voting rights, but it’s still vitally necessary and clearly the best we could do. After months of negotiations, it now appears to be official: The Electoral Count Reform Act has hitched a ride … Continue reading →

Posted in National news, The making of the President | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Electoral Count Act included in must-pass budget bill

A non-prescription pill

Posted on December 6, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This sounds like a good idea. If you’re one of the estimated 10 million people in the United States taking oral contraception, you probably needed a prescription to get it. But that could soon change: In July, a Paris-based company, HRA Pharma, announced it … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on A non-prescription pill

The environmental attack on abortion

Posted on December 5, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

It’s ridiculous. Abortion opponents and their allies in elected office are seizing on an unusual strategy after suffering a wave of election defeats — using environmental laws to try to block the distribution of abortion pills. The new approach comes … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Senate passes Respect For Marriage Act

Posted on November 17, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Nice. And remember who opposed it, kids. Republican U.S. Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz tried to block a Senate vote to explicitly enshrine equal marriage rights for gay, lesbian and bisexual Americans into federal law Wednesday, after 12 GOP … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Senate passes Respect For Marriage Act

There’s a wave of hoax school shooting reports around the country

Posted on October 18, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Weird and scary. When Emmi Conley first heard in September about a rash of hoax calls reporting active shooters in schools, she dismissed it. Conley, an extremism researcher who studies groups and people behind public displays of violence, said she … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment, National news, School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on There’s a wave of hoax school shooting reports around the country

So many abortion clinics have closed

Posted on October 15, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Most of them are in Texas. More than half of the 23 abortion clinics in Texas have closed since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June, according to a new report. Twelve clinics have shuttered their operations … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on So many abortion clinics have closed

The Biden marijuana pardons

Posted on October 7, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

A pretty big deal. Calling the criminalization of marijuana a “failed approach,” President Joe Biden announced a pardon of all federal marijuana possession charges Thursday — and urged governors to follow suit with state-level convictions for marijuana possession. The federal … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The SPURS bills

Posted on September 29, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I admit that I tipped my cap to this one. What if it took an act of Congress to keep the Spurs in San Antonio? With the team playing two games in Austin this season and Austin billionaire Michael Dell … Continue reading →

Posted in National news, Other sports | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The SPURS bills

The Biden student loan forgiveness plan will help a lot of Texans

Posted on September 23, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Hope they’re all voters, because it’s very clear who is on their side and who is against them. More Texans would benefit from President Joe Biden’s plan to forgive student loan debt than residents of nearly any other state — … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Biden student loan forgiveness plan will help a lot of Texans

Republicans propose nationwide abortion ban

Posted on September 14, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

It was ever thus. Republicans are struggling with the backlash against the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade and a series of Republican-controlled states instituting harsh abortion bans. Voters are angry, and that anger has contributed to a reduction in … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

National support for abortion rights on the rise

Posted on September 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

It’s pretty high in this poll. Voters have grown more supportive of legalizing abortion following the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade, with a clear majority opposing restrictions, like bans at a certain point of pregnancy or barring women from traveling to … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

VA says it will provide abortions

Posted on September 5, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Very interesting. The Department of Veterans Affairs said Friday it will provide abortions for veterans and their beneficiaries as medically necessary or in cases of rape or incest. The VA said it plans to provide abortions across the entire nation … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on VA says it will provide abortions