Birth control pills (AP file photo)
OAKLAND, Calif. (CN) In the waning days of the Trump administration, a federal judge is wrestling with whether to vacate federal rules that allow employers to opt out of paying for birth control on religious or moral grounds.
“I’m going to go out on a limb and say it could well be that the Department of Health and Human Services will have a different perspective on these issues than the current one,” U.S. District Judge Haywood Gilliam said Wednesday.
He noted that California Attorney General Xavier Becerra is poised to become the new head of the HHS, uniquely positioning him to go from plaintiff to defendant in a protracted legal battle between the federal government and a California-led coalition of states over cost-free birth control.
By City News Service
Reform L.A. Jails Summit + Day Party: Mental Health Matters
LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon who is under fire less than two weeks into his term from families of some crime victims for directives that are expected to result in lower sentences in many cases said today he s “troubled by what he called “fear-mongering and vowed that those who are prosecuted under his administration will face accountability.
With calls already underway for a recall attempt, the county s newly seated top prosecutor defended his decision to ask for the dismissal of sentencing enhancements that can add extra time to defendants sentences and said there is “ample evidence sentencing enhancements do not necessarily make us any safer.
Trump Admin to Withhold $200 Million From California Over Conscience-Protection Dispute
The administration of President Donald Trump will withhold $200 million in Medicaid funding from the state of California in protest of the state’s abortion insurance mandate.
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar announced the move during a White House event celebrating the Trump administration’s pro-life accomplishments. The Trump administration has long assessed that California was in violation of federal conscience laws by requiring health insurers to pay for abortions.
“We have informed California that this policy clearly violates federal conscience laws, but the state refuses to fix the issue and comply,” Azar said. “Accordingly, we plan to withhold $200 million in federal Medicaid funds from the state in the first quarter of 2021, and unless California amends its policies, we will seek to withhold an additional $200 million every quarter until it comp
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The Trump administration announced two key actions Wednesday designed to protect entities that sought to avoid supporting abortion.
Both announcements addressed longstanding issues handled by the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Civil Rights. In a press release Wednesday, HHS said it would block $200 million in federal Medicaid funds slated for California due to the state illegally mandating that all health care plans subject to regulation by the California Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) cover abortion without exclusion or limitation.
It also said it referred a case to the Justice Department involving a nurse who was allegedly forced to assist in an elective abortion. DOJ announced on Wednesday that it would bring a suit against the University of Vermont Medical Center over the issue.