Latest Contributions

• Head of embattled Texas child abuse investigations resigns after less than a year

  By Eleanor Klibanoff Aug. 12, 2022

  During Robert “Rich” Richman’s short tenure, he oversaw the investigation of parents who provide gender-affirming care to their transgender children and the mishandling of allegations of sex abuse at a foster care facility. Full Story 

• Texas health agency says its plan to extend maternal Medicaid coverage is “not approvable” by feds

  By Eleanor Klibanoff Updated: Aug. 5, 2022

  HHSC said it was initially told the plan was “not approvable.” Federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued a statement Friday saying Texas’ plan to extend coverage to six months was not rejected but still under review. Full Story 

• Texas abortion clinics weigh whether to relocate or refocus

  By Eleanor Klibanoff July 26, 2022

  Some clinics are relocating to “haven states” where abortion will continue to be legal. Others are investing in sexual and reproductive health efforts beyond abortion access. Full Story 

• New Texas law increasing penalties for abortion providers goes into effect Aug. 25

  By Eleanor Klibanoff Updated: July 27, 2022

  The U.S. Supreme Court issued its judgment Tuesday in the Mississippi case that revoked a constitutional right to abortion. That means Texas’ “trigger law” severely limiting the procedure will soon take effect. Full Story 

• Lawyers preparing for abortion prosecutions warn about health care, data privacy

  By Eleanor Klibanoff July 25, 2022

  While people consider deleting period tracking apps and worry about interstate travel restrictions, most pregnancy-related criminalizations start in a much simpler way: with a report from a health care provider. Full Story 

• Linda Coffee argued Roe v. Wade. Now, she’s watching its demise.

  By Eleanor Klibanoff July 12, 2022

  Coffee was just 30 when the U.S. Supreme Court agreed with her argument that the constitutional right to privacy extended to abortion: “I thought, OK, well this is done now. I was thinking the [abortion] question was settled for as long as the country lasted.” Full Story 

• Brittney Griner, Houston-born WNBA player detained in Russia, appeals to Biden

  By Eleanor Klibanoff July 4, 2022

  Griner is “terrified I might be here forever,” according to excerpts of a handwritten letter to the president provided to media outlets by a family representative. Full Story 

• Abortion funds languish in legal turmoil, their leaders fearing jail time if they help Texans

  By Erin Douglas and Eleanor Klibanoff June 29, 2022

  It’s unclear whether Texas’ tangled web of abortion laws would make it a crime to pay for a Texan to leave the state to get an abortion, but the threat has compelled the funds to cease services. Full Story 

• Abortions up to six weeks of pregnancy can temporarily resume in Texas, judge rules

  By Ariana Perez-Castells, Eleanor Klibanoff and Erin Douglas Updated: June 28, 2022

  A ban in effect before Roe v. Wade cannot be used, as threatened last week by Attorney General Ken Paxton, according to a judge’s ruling Tuesday. However, the stopgap measure will, at most, extend abortion access in the state for two months. Full Story 

• The U.S. Supreme Court gave Texas abortion clinics a victory in 2016. Then Trump was elected.

  By Eleanor Klibanoff Updated: June 27, 2022

  In 2016, the Supreme Court blocked onerous regulations that had shuttered half of Texas’ abortion providers. On Friday, the court’s new conservative majority cited that case in overturning the constitutional protection for abortion. Full Story