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What the Kansas abortion rights win means for Kentucky [1]
['Rachel Roubein']
Date: 2022-08-18
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Good morning and happy Thursday, which happens to be The Health 202’s Friday. We’ll break again for our summer sched and see you back here Tuesday. Send compliments and criticisms to
[email protected]. Wp Get the full experience. Choose your plan ArrowRight Today’s edition: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is planning major improvements after frequent missteps amid the pandemic. Planned Parenthood will spend a record $50 million on the midterm elections. But first …
Fresh off her Kansas victory, Rachel Sweet heads to Kentucky to fight an antiabortion ballot measure
Kansas voters surprised everyone when they overwhelmingly rejected an antiabortion ballot measure earlier this month.
Now Rachel Sweet, the campaign manager behind that abortion rights victory in Kansas, has been hired to lead a similar effort in Kentucky, The Health 202 has learned.
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Sweet is fresh off her victory in Kansas, where nearly 59 percent of voters in the conservative state defeated an attempt to strip abortion protections from the state constitution. While several states have abortion measures on the ballot in November, Kentucky is the only one where residents will weigh in on a similar measure to explicitly state that nothing in the state constitution creates a right to an abortion.
“We were looking at Kansas as a sort of bellwether for how things could potentially go here in Kentucky,” said Heather Ayer, the campaign coordinator for American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky.
A coalition of groups supporting abortion rights — such as ACLU Kentucky and Planned Parenthood — are opposing the constitutional amendment in Kentucky. The coalition group, called Protect Kentucky Access, recently hired Sweet. She began her new gig leading the Kentucky effort Monday, which hasn’t been previously reported.
Next big fight
There's institutional expertise behind both state campaigns. Mission Control, a direct mail firm working in Democratic politics and on ballot measures, helped with the Kansas campaign and is serving as general consultants to the Kentucky campaign too.
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In Kansas, the campaign settled on messaging that it believed appealed to voters across the political spectrum, as well as to those with complex views on abortion. That included focusing on the freedom of Americans to make their own health-care decisions.
But that doesn’t mean the Kentucky effort will follow the same playbook. The campaign will tailor its strategies based on research into what messages may be effective to voters in the red state.
“I think it's important to acknowledge that Kansas and Kentucky are different places, and what works in one state might not work in another,” Sweet said. “I think one of the reasons we were able to be so successful in Kansas is that we listened to our voters.”
The other side
The wide vote margin in Kansas sent shock waves through the antiabortion movement. In Kentucky, the campaign supporting the constitutional amendment is called Yes for Life, and consists of groups like the Kentucky Right to Life, Kentucky Baptist Convention and the Catholic Conference of Kentucky.
“The margins were ridiculous [in Kansas],” said Todd Gray, the executive director and treasurer of the Kentucky Baptist Convention. “So that's concerning I think for anyone who wants to see life defended.”
But what does that mean for Kentucky? Addia Wuchner, who chairs the Yes for Life alliance, said she had a conversation with her counterparts in Kansas the day after the amendment's defeat to help determine if the Kentucky campaign should make any modifications.
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“We're analyzing that now,” said Wuchner, who also serves as the executive director of the state’s Right to Life chapter. She added she feels confident in the measure being on the general ballot rather than the primary election, like in Kansas, and that the state’s ballot question is written more simply than in Kansas.
As of now, Kentucky has a near-total ban on abortion. Abortion rights groups filed a lawsuit against the ban days after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, arguing the state’s constitution protects the right to privacy and therefore, the right to access an abortion.
Abortion opponents want to ensure that no judge can rule that the constitution does indeed protect abortions, which would squash the state’s ability to restrict the procedure. The Kansas measure shows the importance of “leaving no stone unturned” when it comes to educating voters about the ballot measure, per Jason Hall, the executive director of the Catholic Conference of Kentucky.
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“The message is that this is an opportunity to make a pro-life statement,” Hall said. “This is an opportunity to prevent a state level Roe v. Wade.”
Agency alert
CDC admits to falling short during covid-19 pandemic, orders agency changes
The nation's top public health official acknowledged yesterday that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had failed to respond effectively to the coronavirus pandemic and vowed to make extensive changes, our colleagues Lena H. Sun and Dan Diamond report.
CDC Director Rochelle Walensky told senior leaders that she had embraced a long-awaited revamp of the agency’s culture based on an internal review that called for a nimble and better trained workforce and changing incentives to reward action over publication, among other things. Mary Wakefield, a former deputy health secretary in the Obama administration, has been tasked with leading the reorganization.
The announcement comes over two years into the global health emergency for which its response has been repeatedly faulted as slow, opaque and confusing. The CDC and other health agencies have also faced fierce criticism in recent weeks over their handling of the growing monkeypox outbreak.
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A background briefing document shared with The Post laid out some of the solutions under consideration to address the agency’s most pressing problems. The plan includes …
Restructuring the CDC’s communication approach so that its guiding documents and recommendations are clear and easy to understand.
Creating a new online mechanism for the pre-publication delivery of its findings to speed up public health responses.
Requiring a minimum of six months’ rotation for officials leading an emergency response to assure continuity of operations.
Next steps: Some measures — such as new authority to mandate state data reporting, hire people faster and offer competitive salaries to boost employee recruitment and retention — will require action from Congress. Others are internal changes that Walensky can make, like redirecting key public health divisions to report directly to her. A few will require negotiations with unions.
Scott Gottlieb, a former FDA commissioner:
...If CDC focuses more on core disease control work, frames it in a national security context, and jettisons some activities that sister agencies can handle equally well; it could lead to political consensus to make sure core activities have the proper resources and authorities — Scott Gottlieb, MD (@ScottGottliebMD) August 17, 2022
Reproductive wars
Planned Parenthood launches historic midterm spending effort
Planned Parenthood’s advocacy and political organizations will spend $50 million on November’s midterm elections in an effort to elect abortion rights supporters nationwide, our colleague Amy B Wang writes.
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The effort, which tops the group’s previous $45 million spending record set in 2020, comes about two months after the Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to abortion. It underscores how much reproductive rights advocates believe abortion will be a motivating issue for voters in the upcoming elections.
Planned Parenthood will initially focus on gubernatorial or down-ballot races in nine states where the outcome at the ballot box has the potential to upend abortion rights: Georgia, Nevada, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Arizona, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Michigan and Wisconsin. Many of those states also have competitive Senate races that could determine which party has control of the chamber.
The organization's investments, launched under the program name Take Control, aim to reach up to 6 million voters and will take shape in the form of voter engagement, canvassing, phone and text banking, and advertising. The group will also launch organizing programs run by and for young people of color.
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Planned Parenthood Action Fund:
This November, we must #TakeControl of our bodies & futures and elect leaders who are unapologetic supporters of abortion rights — and are ready to fight for it. Join us:
https://t.co/q3pzJ1pVAK pic.twitter.com/E3KuWkeMmv — Planned Parenthood Action (@PPact) August 17, 2022
Meanwhile, across the country …
In North Carolina: A federal judge Associated Press writes. A federal judge ruled to outlaw abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy in the state, eroding protections in one of the South’s few remaining safe havens for the procedure, thewrites.
In South Carolina: The state Supreme Court Katie Shepherd reports. The state Supreme Court temporarily blocked the state’s near-total abortion ban prohibiting patients from terminating a pregnancy at around six weeks, The Post’sreports.
In Florida: Prosecutor Andrew Warren (D)Ron DeSantis (R) in a bid to be reinstated after he wasKim Bellware and Lateshia Beachum report. Prosecutor(D) has sued Gov.(R) in a bid to be reinstated after he was dismissed from his post for pledging he would not prosecute cases stemming from Florida’s 15-week abortion ban and potential bans on gender-affirming care, The Post'sandreport.
The Post's Caroline Kitchener:
Abortion is now banned after 20 weeks in NC, thanks to a federal judge who lifted an injunction blocking a 2019 law.
While few abortions typically happen after 20 weeks, we will likely see way more soon, with clinics in border states booking 3, 4, even 5 weeks out. — Caroline Kitchener (@CAKitchener) August 17, 2022
On the Hill
Democrats press Biden to invoke Defense Production Act for monkeypox vaccines
New York City Democratic lawmakers are urging President Biden to invoke the Defense Production Act to boost the nation’s access to monkeypox vaccines.
In a letter led by Reps. Jerry Nadler and Ritchie Torres, the lawmakers contend that vaccine demand is outpacing supply as confirmed cases nationwide top 13,500. “Now is the time to call on extraordinary measures to ensure our vaccine supply can meet the challenges of this moment,” the lawmakers wrote.
The administration has recently taken steps to adjust its vaccine strategy to stretch the nation’s limited supply, and the lawmakers note that authorities in the DPA are frequently used to supplement national stockpiles. The White House didn’t respond to The Health 202’s request for comment.
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Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.):
Monkeypox is a clear public health emergency & the fed government must be ready to respond adequately with equitable access to vaccination. That is why @repnadler & I are urging @potus to invoke the Defense Production Act to produce Monkeypox vaccines here in the US. pic.twitter.com/OEAwOgxguJ — Rep. Ritchie Torres (@RepRitchie) August 17, 2022
In other health news
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) told a group of constituents yesterday that he is “for the $35 cap” on insulin, even though he recently voted against a measure that would have instated one for Americans with private insurance, our Post Politics Now colleagues report. He said he instead supports a that he is “for the $35 cap” on insulin, even though he recently voted against a measure that would have instated one for Americans with private insurance, ourcolleagues report. He said he instead supports a broader bipartisan measure that included the cap.
A federal judge ordered CVS, Walgreens and Walmart to pay over $650 million to two Ohio counties that had been flooded with painkillers, per The Post's Marina Lopes and Meryl Kornfield.
Bavarian Nordic, the only company with an approved monkeypox vaccine, said it’s no longer certain it can Bloomberg News. said it’s no longer certain it can meet demand and is talking to multiple production partners as cases rise globally, according to
The CDC had confirmed a case of monkeypox in a California patient whose primary risk factor was close, nonsexual contact at an outdoor event. Researchers note the case “highlights the potential for spread at large gatherings, which may have implications for epidemic control.” nonsexual contact at an outdoor event. Researchers note the case “highlights the potential for spread at large gatherings, which may have implications for epidemic control.”
Health reads
Sugar rush
The farmer pain scale pic.twitter.com/xYdbIUigqK — Dr. Glaucomflecken (@DGlaucomflecken) August 17, 2022
Thanks for reading! See y'all next week.
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[1] Url:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/08/18/what-kansas-abortion-rights-win-means-kentucky/
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