Elisha Brown
@elishabrown.bsky.social
Staff writer + newsletter author @stateline.org, part of @statesnewsroom.com. Subscribe to Reproductive Rights Today: https://t.co/MhXxW1pLfr And sign up for Stateline Weekly: https://stateline.org/subscribe/ Contact: ebrown@stateline.org
New data from the CDC is out about endometriosis, PCOS/PMOS and uterine fibroids. Feds found that Black women have the lowest diagnosis of PCOS compared to other races. Endo diagnosis was highest among white women, while UF diagnosis was highest among Black women. www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/he...
Endometriosis, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, and Uterine Fibroids in Women Ages 20–49: United States, 2022–2023
Published: July 28, 2026
cdc.gov
Another installment of our crisis pregnancy centers series is up now. Awesome work by @sofiaresnick.bsky.social "With the help of the Alliance Defending Freedom, crisis pregnancy centers have overturned or prevented disclosure laws from being enforced or blocked investigations in (three states)."
Crisis pregnancy centers fight for ultrasound use in clinics without government oversight • Stateline
Anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers routinely offer free ultrasounds, but there is little oversight. OB-GYNs, state lawmakers, government officials, reproductive health advocates, and current and f...
stateline.org
Rates of high blood pressure among pregnant women in the U.S. rose significantly between 2016 and 2024. Hypertension during pregnancy is associated with stillbirth, heart disease among mothers and other serious complications.
Rates of High Blood Pressure Are Rising in Pregnant Women, Study Finds
Hypertension during pregnancy is associated with stillbirth, heart disease among mothers and other serious complications.
nyti.ms
"In the months and years ahead, unless something dramatic changes, giving birth in a rural county is going to become an even more dangerous prospect."
Rural America’s Maternal-Health Crisis Is About to Get Much Worse
Care will be in shorter supply, travel distances will stretch farther, and high-risk situations will more likely result in tragedy.
theatlantic.com
An ICE agent in Houston shot and killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo last week, the latest in a string of shootings by ICE officers who later claimed the victim attempted to hit them with a car—a claim that, in many cases, has been refuted by video evidence. minnesotareformer.com/2026/07/13/i...
Immigration agents are still shooting people in cars • Minnesota Reformer
On Tuesday, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Houston shot and killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, the latest in a string of shootings by ICE officers who later claimed the victim attempt...
minnesotareformer.com
The NYT's homepage hed swapped "fraught" with "complicated," which I'd argue is more accurate.
Lindsey Graham Had a Complicated Relationship With Black Voters (Gift Article)
Mr. Graham, a long-serving senator from South Carolina, was known for his ability to maintain relationships even with his political foes. But the support of Black voters remained elusive.
nytimes.com
One minute these babies are fine. The next they're seizing, or vomiting blood, or not waking from a nap, or not breathing. I spoke with more than a dozen doctors who have seen the consequences of more parents declining the routine vitamin K shot for their newborns. This is what it looks like.
As Parents Reject Vitamin K Shots, Some Babies Develop Devastating Bleeding
nytimes.com
Kehlani has an Aaliyah like aura atp. Protect them at all costs!
Gutwrenching story via @annaspoerre.bsky.social / @missouriindependent.com
Childbirth left a Missouri mother paralyzed. Childcare access helped her heal • Missouri Independent
After a childbirth injury left her paralyzed, Danielle Stewart says affordable child care helped her recover and rebuild life with her daughter.
missouriindependent.com
Friends, I'm still looking to chat about AMBITION with young women and femmes who are rising college seniors or recent graduates for an upcoming @thecut.com story. Is that you or someone you know? Fill out this survey to participate or share it with people in your life! forms.gle/cS2DCDrTTN6x...
The Cut Survey: Tell Us Everything About Your Ambition
Are you a young woman or femme who is a rising college senior or a recent graduate? We want to hear everything you think about ambition — the good, the bad, and the weird — for an upcoming story on Ne...
forms.gle
Awful news to read on Juneteenth. Please visit this museum.
International African American Museum in South Carolina to furlough all its staff
Decision comes as the museum in Charleston says it faces a ‘shift in the political and funding environment’
theguardian.com
NEW from me: The National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association and a family planning organization in Pennsylvania sued the U.S. Health and Human Services agency on Thursday alleging that it is politicizing the Title X grant funding program and violating the intent of the law.
Family planning organizations sue Trump administration over Title X funding announcement • Stateline
The National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association and a family planning organization in Pennsylvania filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Health and Human Services agency on Thursday allegi...
stateline.org
For more than half a century, Title X has been a bipartisan program to help women and men get contraception and reproductive health care, reducing unintended pregnancies and making America healthier. Now the Trump administration is gutting it.
Sofia Resnick@sofiaresnick.bsky.social · 2mo agoICYMI the Trump administration is changing the fundamental mission of the federal poverty-fighting Title X grant program from reducing unintended pregnancies, to a vague promotion of “body literacy education” and “restorative approaches to reproductive health.” stateline.org/2026/06/18/t...
The U.S. has a shortage of the only first-line medication recommended for pregnant women with syphilis to prevent passing it to their baby. https://stateline.org/2026/06/15/one-us-made-drug-treats-congenital-syphilis-and-the-country-is-running-short/
One US-made drug treats congenital syphilis, and the country is running short • Stateline
The United States has a shortage of the only first-line medication recommended for pregnant women with syphilis to prevent passing it to their baby, even as congenital syphilis rates have been skyrocketing. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says supplies won’t return to normal until December 2027.
stateline.org
SCOOP: Hospitals “must eliminate all DEI/DEIA programs, gender-identity based and gender-ideology based initiatives, and any activities, internal or external, that promote gender identity or gender ideology," an internal memo sent to me by a VA provider states. www.advocate.com/politics/nat...
Trump admin eliminates health care programs for LGBTQ+ veterans
Internal VA guidance obtained by The Advocate raises questions about the future of specialized assistance for those who served.
advocate.com
A1 lede from @megankhenry.bsky.social via @ohiocapitaljournal.com: "Ohio lawmakers have passed a bill that would require schools to teach students to graduate high school, get a job, and get married — in that order — before having a baby. They call this order of events the success sequence."
Ohio Republican lawmakers pass bill that includes requiring schools to teach when to have kids • Ohio Capital Journal
Ohio lawmakers passed a bill that would require Ohio schools to teach students to graduate high school, get a job, and get married — in that order — before having a baby.
ohiocapitaljournal.com
Via Anna Barrett: The Alabama Attorney General’s Office on Tuesday threatened legal action against six companies that it said were advertising or distributing abortion-inducing medication to Alabamians. https://ow.ly/939k50ZahuZ
Bill advances to update NJ’s 19th-century midwife laws newjerseymonitor.com/2026/06/09/n...
Bill advances to update NJ's 19th-century midwife laws • New Jersey Monitor
A Senate panel Monday OK'd a bill to update NJ's midwife laws, something supporters say will boost the profession and make birth safer.
newjerseymonitor.com
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has released a recommended vaccine schedule during pregnancy, one that diverges from CDC guidance. www.statnews.com/2026/06/10/a...
OB-GYN association, deviating from CDC guidance, issues its own vaccine recommendations
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has released a recommended vaccine schedule during pregnancy, one that diverges from CDC guidance.
statnews.com
Arkansas opposing attorneys’ efforts to depose governor in lawsuit challenging abortion ban arkansasadvocate.com/2026/06/08/a...
Arkansas opposing attorneys’ efforts to depose governor in lawsuit challenging abortion ban | Arkansas Advocate
The deposition would cover details of communications between Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ office and friends and family of the lawsuit’s lead plaintiff.
arkansasadvocate.com
Feed finally feels like old twitter over here. Shout out to them boys playin ball.
New from me today: Researchers, advocates and survivors of domestic violence say it’s vital to keep telehealth access available for people in abusive relationships who need discreet abortion options. Access to telehealth prescriptions of mifepristone is threatened by an ongoing Louisiana lawsuit.
Telehealth access to abortion pill is lifesaving for domestic violence survivors, some say • Stateline
Researchers, advocates and survivors of domestic abuse say it’s vital to keep telehealth access available for people in abusive relationships who need discreet abortion options — while the Louisiana s...
stateline.org
"Marjane Satrapi, the Iranian-French author whose graphic novel series “Persepolis” introduced millions of readers to the struggles of ordinary Iranians during the turbulent years around the Islamic Revolution, has died at 56." www.nytimes.com/2026/06/04/w...
Marjane Satrapi, the Author of ‘Persepolis,’ Dies at 56
nytimes.com
The Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine published new clinical guidance this week affirming that acetaminophen, better known by its brand Tylenol, should be the “first-line” defense against pain and fever during pregnancy. From @stateline.org
New medical guidance affirms Tylenol safety during pregnancy months after Trump sows doubt • Pennsylvania Capital-Star
The Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine published new clinical guidance this week affirming that acetaminophen, better known by its brand Tylenol, should be the “first-line” defense against pain and f...
penncapital-star.com
Racial wealth gap widens as many workers of color lack retirement savings arkansasadvocate.com/2026/06/03/r...
Racial wealth gap widens as many workers of color lack retirement savings | Arkansas Advocate
The median wealth gap between Black and Hispanic families and white families expanded by about $50,000 between 2019 and 2022, according to research from The Pew Charitable Trusts. The typical white fa...
arkansasadvocate.com
New from me: Melisa Hidalgo-Cuellar, director of Colorado’s Cobalt Abortion Fund, said their costs rose 26% in the first 3 months of 2026 because of soaring gas and airfare prices. The total spent in the first quarter of 2025 was about $465,000, while the total this quarter was nearly $590,000.
Rising costs of fuel, other goods squeezes already strained abortion funds • Stateline
The increasing costs of fuel for cars and airplanes is adding extra strain to abortion funds that help people pay to travel for care in other states, leaders of several funds said this week.
stateline.org
This is bittersweet, my last repro story @stateline.org for now: Black women in Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi are suing states over midwifery restrictions that they say make it harder for them to help expectant mothers in rural and underserved areas.
Black midwives are suing Southern states, claiming regulations make it harder to help patients • Stateline
Black midwives in the South, a region rife with racial disparities in maternal health access and maternal mortality, are leading lawsuits over state regulations that they say limit their ability to pr...
stateline.org
