Morning Roundup: Nebraska Rejects Insurance Coverage of Abortion for Rape and Incest Victims

Beth Saunders

A new rectal gel shows promise at reducing transmission of HIV when applied before anal sex, Elton John speaks out against American sex ed, Nebraska lawmakers don't want rape and incest victims to have access to private insurance-covered abortions, and a condom fashion show at USC.

A new rectal gel shows promise at reducing transmission of HIV when applied before anal sex, Elton John speaks out against American sex ed, Nebraska lawmakers don’t want rape and incest victims to have access to private insurance-covered abortions, and a condom fashion show at USC.

  • A gel form of the AIDS drug tenofovir has been shown to reduce transmission of the virus when applied to the rectum prior to anal sex.  Previous studies have shown that a slightly different formula of the gel provided similar effects when used vaginally. Researchers are still working on the exact composition of the gel.
  • Did you go to Elton John’s Oscar-viewing party? No, me neither. I was busy lying on the couch wearing sweatpants, so I missed Elton railing against American schools’ lack of sex education. Talking about HIV/AIDS, he said, “With young people, the infection rates rise and until you inform people and make this disease a non-stigmatized thing, you’re never going to have any change and we’re batting our heads against a brick wall. We need to get into schools.”
  • Lawmakers in Nebraska rejected a measure that would have allowed health insurance in that state to cover pregnancy termination for rape and incest victims. Nebraska lawmakers are working on a bill to exclude abortion coverage from all insurance in the state, and apparently lawmakers have decided that rape victims are on their own.
  • Do you like Project Runway? Do you like sexual health? Then you have to check out the images from Project Condom, a fashion show/condom education project at the University of South Carolina. Teams of students created elaborate costumes out of different colored condoms, and educated the audience on proper condom usage.

Mar 2

Mar 1