The Trains Keep On Rollin’ On Health Care Reform…

The Wonk Room reports that, 

The White House is considering improving the affordability of health care reform
by “exempting more families and individuals on the basis of income from
the penalty for failing to buy insurance, a fine that for families
could run as high as $1,900.”

Senators are debating just how best to ensure affordability for all Americans – most obviously, subsidies – while keeping in mind President Obama’s statement that he would not accept a health care bill that would cost more than $900 billion over ten years. According to the New York Times, "subsidies are already the biggest-ticket item."

While The Media Consortium’s Lindsay Beyerstein writes that "reports of the death of the public option are greatly exaggerated" as the Senate Finance Committee is scheduled to debate the public option tomorrow. Beyerstein notes that,

According to Steve Benen of the Washington Monthly, liberals are
once again optimistic
that health care reform will include a publicly-run insurance option to compete with private insurance companies. The main excuse to drop the public option was that Republicans wouldn’t go for it. As Benen explains, now that a bipartisan bill is out of reach, Democrats can move further to the left.

National Sex-Ed Week of Action!

This week is national sex-ed week of action. Check out the twitter hashtag #sexed for updates from various organizations including Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri.

And for an added bonus, read this excellent op-ed in the Atlanta Journal-Constition from a teen on the importance of sexual health education for young people. As a teen educator, she writes, 

I see firsthand how responsive teens are to complete and accurate
information. Young people are thirsty for knowledge and recognize how
important this information is to their lives.

I have seen how well teens respond to messages from other teens, often even better than they do with adult educators.

Yaz We Can’t?

The Daily Women’s Health Policy Report covers concerns, reported on in The New York Times this weekend, by "researchers, health advocates and lawyers for plaintiffs who have filed lawsuits against its manufacturer Bayer Healthcare" that Yaz, the popular oral contraceptive, may not be safe. The report notes that,

According to Bayer, the company has been served with 74 lawsuits
brought by women who say they developed health problems after taking
Yasmin or Yaz. 

More News From Around the Web

SEPTEMBER 28
NYTimes: Health Care Reform Is a Women’s Issue
AP: NY adoption lawyer accused of ripoffs
Creative Minority Report: The Hypocrisy of Personhood
Jamaica Observer: 77% SAY NO TO ABORTIONS FORCED BY LAW
AZ Star Net: New AZ abortion law goes quickly to courts
Philippine Daily Inquirer: Noynoy and the dignity of life
LA Times: A new push to define ‘person,’ and to outlaw abortion in the process
Catholic Online: Contraception: At Odds with Truth

SEPTEMBER 27
Change.org Global Health: Working To Decrease Child Mortality in the Philippines
Human Rights: Yaz Birth Control Controversy: Pharmaceutical Profits, Unnecessary Risks, and the Gendered Distribution of Family Planning
MN Daily: Two UW newspapers reject pro-life ad insert
Today’s THV: Group Erects Hundreds of Crosses To Protest Abortion
Springfield News Sun: Groups call for more sex ed, insurance for birth control
Catholic News Agency: Watchdog group ‘pleased’ with defunding of grantees who violate Catholic teaching
Knox News: If you’re pro-choice, prevent pregnancy
My SA: State has poor grade in sex ed
UPI: Spanish cabinet eases abortion law
Mansfield News Journal: Opinion Shapers: Why abortion is needed, and why Ohio clinic violence must stop
Nola.com: Health care debate to turn this week to abortion issue
EChurch: Contrasting
media news coverage of a murdered abortion doctor (George Tiller) and a
murdered anti-abortion activist (Jim Pouillon) reveals much about media
bias.
Arizona Republic: New laws go into effect Wednesday
Statesman.com: Some Texas districts change tune on abstinence-only sex ed
Feministing: The Feministing Five: Kate Marsh
Minneapolis Star Tribune: Chinese parents: ‘Our children were exported’
Capital News: Govt encourages use of its contraceptives

SEPTEMBER 26
HuffPo: Birth
Control Health Hazards: Popular Contraceptives Put Women At Higher Risk
For Blood Clots, Strokes, Other Health Problems, Researches Say
Alliance Alert: Gary Bauer: Planned Parenthood Abortion Business Needs ACORN Treatment, DeFund It
Catholic News Agency: Bishop Aquila prays at North Dakota abortion clinic as 40 Days for Life continues
OneNewsNow: Fear grows among pro-life activists
Ireland Online: Survey: 55% don’t use contraception for first-time sex
The Nation: Thai youths rank poorly on contraceptive use

SEPTEMBER 25
LifeNews: Pro-Life News: PVS State, Arizona, Virginia, Illinois, Malta, UN, Planned Parenthood
Billings Gazette: Personhood law’s petitioning starts
Yuma Sun: Officials argue against new abortion law
LifeNews: Virginia Abortion Advocates Attack Choose Life License Plates, Pregnancy Centers
NC Register: Another Pro-Abortion Catholic Massachusetts Senator?
NYTImes: Health Concerns Over Popular Contraceptives
LifeSiteNews: ACORN Sues Young Pro-Life Investigators $1M Each for Sting Operation
American Enterprise Institute: Should Religious Leaders Trust President Obama’s Assurance on Abortion and Healthcare Reform?
Feministing: For some, pro-life also means anti-contraception
Christian NewsWire: FRC to Release First-Ever In-Depth Report on Pregnancy Center Movement
Catholic Online: Partial Victory in Rockford through Pro-Life Solidarity!
Kenyan Nation: Kenya urged to increase contraceptive supplies
Seattle Times: City Council candidates clash over abortion rights
Reuters: Gay couples as fit to adopt as heterosexuals: study
LifeNews: 40 Days for Life Event Results in California Abortion Center Employee Quitting
AZ Daily Sun: Abortion restrictions deserve challenges