Some of the media coverage of Tuesday's arguments before the Supreme Courton the contraception mandate tended to pit women's rights activists against social conservatives, making contraception seem like a lifestyle choice that only benefits some women -- you know, the ones who have sex. What often gets lost in the debate is why contraception is…
"We are a very rich country, but we have rationed healthcare in a way that is unconscionable." Judy Norsigian, Our Bodies Ourselves co-founder and executive director, doesn't hold back in this March 6 discussion on women's health with Sonia Pressman Fuentes, National Organization for Women (NOW) co-founder. (Watch the video below.) Luz Corcuera, program director of Healthy…
For 25 years, Teen Voices magazine has provided a place for journalism and other writing created by and for teenage girls. This great publication, originally based in Boston, was on the brink of shutting down last year, but Women's eNews took it under its wing, with plans to build upon its mission of improving the…
The Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology has released new data on in vitro fertilization (IVF) use in the United States during 2012, and the numbers are up -- way up. The organization, which represents IVF providers, reports that more than 165,000 cycles of IVF were performed in 2012, making it the biggest year ever in terms of…
A new, long-term study in BMJ provides perhaps the most compelling argument to date that screening mammograms may not be effective in reducing the death rate from cancer and may in fact cause harm from overtreatment in some women. The study is based on results from the Canadian National Breast Screening Study. For this research, 89,835 women…
Dr. Gary Romalis, a major proponent of women's reproductive health and rights, died on Jan. 30 at age 76. Dr. Romalis was dedicated to helping women by providing abortion. In a 2008 speech at University of Toronto, Romalis addressed some of the horrible consequences he had witnessed of unsafe abortions, and explained why he chose to provide abortions:…
The U.S. abortion rate has declined to its lowest levels in four decades, according to a new report from the Guttmacher Institute. As of 2011, the rate had declined to 16.9 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15–44, almost half of what it was in 1981 (29.3 per 1,000 women) and the lowest since 1973 (16.3 per…
We all know what forcing women to undergo and view ultrasounds prior to an abortion is supposed to do -- influence women to carry their pregnancies to term. That's why crisis pregnancy centers, which operate with an anti-abortion agenda, offer ultrasounds even though most are not equipped to provide medical services, and anti-abortion mobile buses…
Interested in learning more about women's health and human rights? A free, online course offered by Stanford University kicks off Friday, Jan. 24. The course is open to everyone -- you just need an interest in health and social justice and an online connection. Anne Firth Murray, founding president of the Global Fund for Women…
Today marks the 41st anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision making abortion legal throughout the United States. As we have seen, however, legality does not equal access. Many states have chipped away at Roe v. Wade; in 2012 alone, 22 states enacted 70 new abortion restrictions, making abortion much more difficult to obtain There have been numerous stories lately on state…
