(ATLANTA) — Sick workers were behind a plurality of foodborne illness outbreaks and caterers in the U.S., new federal data shows.
In a report published Tuesday afternoon, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention looked at outbreaks across 25 state and local health departments from 2017 to 2019.
They found that among outbreaks where a contributing factor was identified, four in 10 — or 41% — were caused by food contamination from ill or infectious employees.
This included handlers, workers or preparers making either gloved or barehanded contact with food.
“If a food worker stays on the job while sick and does not wash his or her hands carefully after using the toilet, the food worker can spread germs by touching food,’ the CDC writes on its website.
Of managers who were interviewed, 91.7% said their restaurant or establishment had policies requiring food workers to notify their manager when they were ill.
However, “often these policies were missing components intended to reduce foodborne illness risk,” the CDC said.
For example, 66% of managers said they had a written policy about workers notifying superiors regarding illness.
Only 69.5% specifies symptoms that would lead to restricting or excluding ill workers from working. But just 23% said their policy specified the five symptoms of foodborne illness workers needed to report to their manager including vomiting, diarrhea, jaundice, sore throat with fever and lesions with pus.
The report also found that under half — 43.6% — of managers interview said their establishments provided paid sick leave to any workers.
“Contamination of food by ill food workers is a top contributing factor to foodborne outbreaks in retail food establishments; therefore, identifying gaps in these establishments’ ill worker policies is important to outbreak prevention,” the authors wrote in the report.
“Health departments responsible for ensuring food safety in retail food establishments can use the findings in this report to assess their food safety priorities and guide their outbreak investigations and routine (i.e., preventive) inspections,” they continued.
The report also found that 17.6% was caused by contaminated food that was meant to be consumed raw, undercooked or underprocessed.
Another 10.6% of outbreaks were caused by improper or slow cooling of food and 6.6% were caused by either insufficient time, temperature or both during the cooking or heating process.
What’s more, when it came to what bacteria or viruses led to the outbreaks, norovirus was the most commonly identified cause at 47%.
Norovirus is a highly contagious virus that is the most common cause of viral gastroenteritis, which is an inflammation of the inside lining of the gastrointestinal tract. In fact, it is the leading cause of foodborne illness in the United States, causing 58% of foodborne illnesses each year, according to the CDC.
This was followed by salmonella — a bacteria that lives in the intestinal tract of animals — accounting for 18.6% of outbreaks.
(NEW YORK) — At least two Americans have died and 17 have suspected or probable cases of a potentially deadly infection linked to an outbreak at cosmetic surgery clinics in Mexico.
The infected patients contracted fungal meningitis after having procedures under epidural anesthesia in Matamoros, Mexico — just across the border from Brownsville, Texas — according to the state’s Department of Health Services.
More than 200 people across the U.S. who underwent operations between Jan. 1 and May 13 of this year may be at risk, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Despite the closure of River Side Surgical Center and K3 Clinica, people developed symptoms of fungal meningitis weeks later.
Here are the signs to look for and how the infection can be treated before it’s too late:
What is fungal meningitis?
Meningitis is a type of infection and inflammation affecting the fluid and three meninges — or membranes — that protect the brain and spinal cord.
Fungal meningitis specifically occurs after someone contracts a fungal infection that spreads to the brain or spinal cord, according to the CDC.
Signs and symptoms can appear weeks after initially developing the infection and include headache, fever, nausea, vomiting, stiff neck, sensitivity to light and an altered mental state.
How do people contract fungal meningitis?
Many fungi are too small to see with the naked eye so it’s easy for people to breathe in or ingest microscopic spores, the CDC says.
Fungal meningitis is not contagious and cannot spread from person to person.
“While rare, outbreaks of fungal meningitis following medical and surgical procedures have occurred,” the CDC says on its website. “Healthcare providers can find information on testing and treatment options for patients with suspected or confirmed fungal meningitis. These options are applicable to patients regardless of where exposure occurred.”
How is fungal meningitis treated?
To be diagnosed with fungal meningitis, a patient gives samples of blood or cerebrospinal fluid that are tested for the presence of fungi.
If results are positive, patients are then given high doses of antifungal medications intravenously, according to the CDC, which may include amphotericin B — a medication that stops the growth of fungi.
Next, patients are given antifungal medications by mouth, the health agency said, which may include itraconazole or fluconazole.
There is no specific timeline for how long a patient takes these medications; it will depend on the patient’s immune system. For example, those with underlying conditions weakening the ability of the body to fight infections, including cancer or HIV/AIDS, may have a longer course of treatment.
Is fungal meningitis deadly?
There is no data on the number of deaths per year from fungal meningitis but public health experts say it can turn deadly if not identified and treated quickly.
A 2017 study on an outbreak in Virginia found that 9.678% of the people who developed fungal meningitis died even after receiving treatment and 100% with fungal meningitis who did not receive treatment died.
One of the two patients who died in this current outbreak is Shyanne Medrano, a 31-year-old mother from Houston, according to local ABC affiliate KRGV-TV.
She began to feel sick not long after visiting K3 Clinica in March to receive a Brazilian butt lift.
Weeks later, Medrano was admitted to a hospital with symptoms of the infection. She later developed a blood clot, a family member told KRGV. On May 16, two months after the procedure, Medrano died.
Can I prevent fungal meningitis?
There are no vaccines that protect against fungal meningitis. The CDC does recommend several prevention measures.
These include avoiding areas that contain a lot of dust, staying inside during dust storms, avoiding activities that involve close contact to dirt and cleaning skin injuries with warm water and soap to avoid the odds of developing an infection.
(NEW YORK) — For people with Type 2 diabetes, could the time of day when you exercise have an impact on your blood sugar averages?
A new study seems to suggest so.
After studying more than 2,400 adults over a four-year period, researchers suggest that patients with Type 2 diabetes who exercise in the afternoon instead of in the morning may have better control of their A1C levels.
ABC News’ Erielle Reshef appeared on Good Morning America Monday to discuss the study’s findings:
(NEW YORK) — A mom in Canada is sharing a warning about eating and drinking outdoors as summer approaches.
Reanna Bendzak said she, her husband and their two children were at an outdoor barbecue in March when she gave her then-7-month-old daughter a piece of celery to chew on.
“Our daughter was cutting her second tooth, so we gave her a piece of celery to chew on, just to help soothe those gums,” Bendzak, who asked that her daughter’s name not be used, told ABC News’ Good Morning America. “It wasn’t warm by any means, but it was sunny so she was covered neck-to-toe in a onesie and we had a sun hat on her, so we thought she was fairly well-protected.”
Bendzak said she and her husband wiped their daughter’s face multiple times throughout the afternoon with a cloth, but didn’t at the time wash her face with soap and water.
The next morning, Bendzak said her daughter woke up with a rash around her mouth, which later in the day worsened into blisters.
Bendzak said her daughter was ultimately diagnosed with a condition she had never heard of, phytophotodermatitis, a skin reaction that can happen after touching certain plants while out in the sun, according to research published in the journal Canadian Family Physician and available in the National Library of Medicine.
Celery is among the plants that can cause phytophotodermatitis, Bendzak said she and her husband learned. The condition is also commonly called “margarita burn” because limes and other citrus fruits are also culprits.
“As any parents out there would know, your first reaction is just like, ‘Oh my gosh, what did I do? And how could I have prevented that,'” Bendzak said. “But you’re only as good of a parent as the knowledge you have, and we did what we thought was best at the time.”
She continued, “Now in retrospect, of course, we would have done things differently and made an intentional effort to go inside and wash with soap and water.”
Bendzak said her daughter, who is now 9 months old, experienced blisters on her mouth area for about 10 days, and some scarring and hyperpigmentation for about six weeks, but now is “doing great.”
She said she and her husband estimate their daughter was only exposed to direct sunlight for about 20 minutes total that afternoon, but that was enough time to cause damage.
Once her daughter had recovered, Bendzak shared her family’s story on Facebook in hopes of spreading awareness of phytophotodermatitis.
“I had no idea that it was even a possibility until this experience,” Bendzak said. “Hopefully this story can help others learn from our experience and they can make better decisions for their own personal lives moving forward as well.”
How to treat and prevent phytophotodermatitis
Dr. Jennifer Ashton, ABC News’ chief medical correspondent and a board-certified OB-GYN, said the summer season is a time to be acutely aware of phytophotodermatitis as people are often outside cooking, eating and making drinks.
“Citrus is definitely the most common, and lime is the most common amongst the citrus,” Ashton said. “So, that’s why it’s gotten this name, ‘margarita burn.’ People are making or drinking margaritas, touching limes outside in the summer months, and that can be an exposure.”
In addition to celery and citrus, other plants and fruits that can cause phytophotodermatitis include carrots, peppers, dill, fennel, mustard, parsley and parsnip.
Ashton said the best prevention method is to wash your skin with soap and water if you are handling food and drinks while outside in the sun.
Another important prevention method, according to Ashton, is to wear sunscreen daily.
“If you are going to be outside in the summer months, make sure you’re reapplying that SPF every two hours,” she said, adding, “But to be crystal clear, [SPF] should be used 365 days a year, on your face, hands and neck, people of all skin colors, all skin types. So make it part of your day-to-day routine.”
If a person notices changes on their skin, Ashton said they should contact a healthcare provider.
She noted that phytophotodermatitis can present from mild to severe symptoms.
“It really is a spectrum of severity in terms of mild, moderate to severe,” Ashton said. “In mild cases, where someone has touched a lime or the citrus, you could just see some itching, some inflammation. You could see some some redness or pinkish discoloration depending on skin color, and then you could see a full spectrum of severity, ranging in more moderate cases to discoloration that may persist longer, and in severe cases, even some small blistering.”
(NEW YORK) — The landscape of abortion rights has shifted dramatically in the 11 months since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, ending federal protections for abortion rights.
The decision left it up to states to decide how to regulate abortion services.
States in the West and Northeast have since taken steps to expand and protect abortion rights, while states across the South, Great Plains and Midwest have moved to ban or restrict abortion care.
Sixteen states have ceased nearly all abortion services.
South Carolina became the latest state to greatly restrict abortion access this week after its governor signed a six-week ban into law.
Florida could be the next state to severely restrict abortion services. If a state court upholds a 15-week abortion ban, a new six-week abortion ban will go into effect.
The ban would prohibit all abortions after fetal cardiac activity is detected, which generally occurs around six weeks of pregnancy, before most women know they are pregnant. The ban makes exceptions for when the woman’s life or health is at risk and cases of rape or incest, under certain conditions.
If allowed to go into effect, the ban will limit access to many women in the South who live in areas where Florida would have been the closest state where they could access care.
Medication abortions
Meanwhile, a court case in Texas is seeking to revoke the Federal Drug and Food Administration’s approval of one of the medications used in chemical abortions — mifepristone — across the country, even in states where abortion is protected.
The case is currently before the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals but is expected to reach the U.S. Supreme Court. Mifepristone remains available while the case continues.
Wyoming became the first state to ban medication abortions in March.
How abortion bans largely work
Nearly all bans throughout the country target physicians, making it illegal for them to provide abortion services punishable by fines, jail time and their medical licenses being revoked.
Some bans — modeled after a Texas law — make it a crime to aid women in accessing abortion care and establish civil liability against individuals who violate state bans.
Texas, which has several abortion bans in place, allows people to sue anyone who “aids or abets” an illegal abortion, to collect a bounty of at least $10,000.
Physicians warn that the anti-abortion landscape in some states will discourage doctors and future doctors from moving to states banning or restricting abortion. This could also have implications for reproductive and female health care in the states.
Residency programs in states with bans in place saw a drop in the number of OB-GYN residency applications, according to recent data from the Association of American Medical Colleges. While there was an overall decrease in the number of all residency applications submitted in 2023, the decrease was sharper in states with complete bans compared to states without restrictions, according to the data.
There was a 10.5% decrease in OB-GYN applicants in states with complete bans in 2023 compared to 2022 residency applications, according to the study. In states without restrictions, the decrease was only 5.3%, data shows.
How pregnant women are being affected
Some women have come forward with stories about how abortion bans have impact them and their access to reproductive health care. In a first since Roe was overturned, 15 Texas women filed a lawsuit against the state, saying that its near-total ban put their lives in danger.
Abortion ban challenges in other states face legal challenges from abortion providers, on behalf of their patients, abortion clinics and pro-abortion rights groups.
Kylie Beaton, a woman in Texas, told ABC News she was forced to carry a nonviable pregnancy to term, watching her son die days after he was born. Beaton was unable to access care in New Mexico because she was too far along when she received her diagnosis — past the facility’s cutoff point — despite the state allowing abortion at all stages of pregnancies.
The only other option was a facility in Colorado that provided late-term care, but Beaton and her husband could not afford the $10,000 to $15,000 it would have cost. Beaton has since joined other women suing Texas over its ban.
Women forced to travel to receive abortion care also risk having to continue further along into their pregnancies. The further along a pregnancy, the more complex, risky and expensive the abortion care.
Even with exceptions to abortion bans, women have reported having to wait until their health deteriorates or until their life is in danger before they could get care in states with near-total or total bans.
“Heartbeat” laws which prohibit abortions when cardiac activity can be detected have in some cases complicated care for women whose water breaks before their pregnancy is viable.
Kristen Anaya, who lives in Texas, told ABC News she had to wait until she went into sepsis before she could get abortion care because her fetus still had a heartbeat, despite her high fever and shaking uncontrollably for hours — both signs of an infection.
In Florida, Anya Cook was sent home from a hospital after losing nearly all her amniotic fluid because she wasn’t at a high risk for any complications, despite the risk that she could go into sepsis without delivering the fetus—which can be fatal. She later delivered in the bathroom of a hair salon, bleeding so much she lost half the blood in her body and had to be hospitalized for six days, she told ABC News.
She needed two subsequent procedures to remove the remainder of her placenta. This pregnancy was her 17th miscarriage in just two years, she told ABC News.
(COLUMBIA, S.C.) — South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster signed a six-week abortion ban into law Thursday, with it going into effect immediately. The new ban prohibits all abortions after fetal cardiac activity is detected, which generally occurs at six weeks of pregnancy, with limited exceptions, according to the ban.
“With my signature, the Fetal Heartbeat and Protection from Abortion Act is now law and will begin saving the lives of unborn children immediately,” McMaster said. “This is a great day for life in South Carolina, but the fight is not over. We stand ready to defend this legislation against any challenges and are confident we will succeed. The right to life must be preserved, and we will do everything we can to protect it.”
Abortion providers Planned Parenthood and Greenville Women’s Clinic have filed a lawsuit challenging the state’s ban and seeking a temporary restraining order that would prevent enforcement of the law.
“Abortion providers have asked a state trial court to block S. 474 on the grounds that it violates South Carolinians’ constitutional rights to privacy, equal protection, and substantive due process by banning abortion, providing inadequate protections for patients’ health, conditioning sexual assault survivors’ access to abortion on the disclosure of their personal information to law enforcement, violating the Medicaid Act, and improperly targeting Planned Parenthood through an unconstitutional bill of attainder,” Planned Parenthood said in a statement.
McMaster signed a previous so-called “heartbeat ban” into law in 2021, but it was struck down by the state’s Supreme Court in January.
Fifteen states have ceased nearly all abortion services since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, ending federal protections for abortion rights.
Under the new ban, abortions are permitted to prevent the death of the pregnant woman, to prevent the serious risk of a substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function, in cases of rape and incest and if the fetus has a fatal anomaly, according to the ban. The exception does not include psychological and emotional conditions.
Conditions listed under the exception include molar pregnancy, partial molar pregnancy, blighted ovum, ectopic pregnancy, severe preeclampsia, HELLP syndrome, abruptio placentae, severe physical maternal trauma, uterine rupture, intrauterine fetal demise and miscarriage, according to the bill.
Anyone who violates the ban is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, must be fined $10,000, face prison time of up to two years or both. Physicians or medical providers found guilty of performing illegal abortions will also have their licenses revoked.
Planned Parenthood said, along with its partners, that it is prepared to challenge the ban in court.
“Abortion is already difficult to access in South Carolina, with only three abortion clinics in the state and a range of limitations on access imposed by state lawmakers. South Carolina ranks 43rd — in the bottom 10 of all states — with the highest maternal mortality rates. Women here are three times more likely to die during pregnancy or childbirth than the average U.S. woman,” Planned Parenthood said in a statement.
‘Sister senators’ fight against ban
A group of five women senators, the only five in the legislative body, has fought against the bill. The group, who’ve adopted the term “sister senators,” told ABC News that a short holiday week near the end of the legislation session would be the time the men would “shove it down our throats.”
Even before the vote they had a sense that a back-room deal had been made to get it through. After three attempts, the senators’ filibuster failed to block the bill from passing.
“Women are 51% of the South Carolina population [but hold] only 14% of the General Assembly and even less than that in the Senate. What I believe is that women are going to show up at the ballot box,” state Sen. Sandy Senn said.
The group of women are very different — three Republicans, one Democrat and one independent — but they are all religious mothers who are certain this bill passing in the state Senate would be bad for women in the state. None of them viewed themselves as women’s rights advocates or feminists and they all said they were “pro-life.”
“We all believe in life. We believe in life for the woman as well as a life for the child,” state Sen. Margie Bright-Matthews told ABC News.
They needed two men to cross over to vote with them on Tuesday to block the ban, but one of their previous allies had gone dark, which they knew wasn’t a good sign.
Abortion options for women in the Deep South are now closing fast, with Florida’s six-week ban awaiting a court ruling soon and North Carolina’s 12-week ban taking effect.
What is in the ban?
Women will be required to have to in-person doctors appointments before they can receive an abortion.
Under the ban, pregnant women cannot be criminally prosecuted or face civil liability for violations of the ban.
If the fetus is alive in utero, physicians are required to make reasonable efforts to preserve the life of the unborn child, provided that does not pose a risk to the health of the pregnant women, according to the bill. Entities that violate this will be fined up to $50,000, according to the bill.
Physicians who perform abortions under the health exceptions have to rationalize why they believe the woman qualifies for the exception in her medical records, according to the bill.
Abortions performed under the rape and incest exceptions must report it to the sheriff in the county in which the abortion was performed within 24 hours. Physicians must tell the patient they will report the rape before the abortion is performed.
Physicians are also required to maintain a copy of the patient’s records for seven years after an abortion is performed under the exception. Failing to do so would be a felony with up to two years of imprisonment and a $10,000 fine on the physician, according to the bill.
Pregnant women upon whom an abortion is performed in violation of the law can seek actual and punitive damages against the violator.
(NEW YORK) — A man left paralyzed by a motorcycle crash over a decade ago is walking again after a surgical procedure aided by artificial intelligence.
Gert-Jan Oskam, 40, said he dreamt of walking again after being paralyzed from the waist down in the 2011 crash.
“I tried everything at home,” Oskam told ABC News. “I tried standing up and making steps, but it wasn’t enough.”
It was not until last year that Oskam, working with researchers in Switzerland, experienced a breakthrough.
In 2022, researchers at Lausanne University Hospital surgically inserted electronic implants in the areas of Oskam’s brain and spinal cord that control movement.
Then, with the help of AI, the researchers built what they call a “digital bridge” between his brain and spine, bypassing his injuries, and essentially putting his thought into action.
“Thanks to algorithms based on adaptive artificial intelligence methods, movement intentions are decoded in real time from brain recordings,” one of the researchers, Guillaume Charvet, said in a statement, noting that the technology allows the patient to “move around independently.”
Oskam said that now he can think about moving, and his body follows his thoughts.
“I think about moving my leg and then the stimulation gives me a pulse to make the step,” Oskam said, noting that even when the sensors are turned off, he can still walk with the help of crutches.
Although this type of AI has been used in medicine for decades, researchers say Oskam’s case is the first successful procedure of its kind.
Researchers describe the breakthrough as using AI as a thought-decoder that processes what the neurons in the brain region are trying to do, and sending that signal to the spine.
Details of the accomplishment were published Wednesday in the medical journal Nature.
The technology that enabled Oskam to walk is still in the preliminary stages, the researchers acknowledged. Oskam was the first human to undergo this procedure.
While the technology is not widely available to patients, the researchers said their mission is to “bring it to other people.”
Nathan Posner/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images, FILE
(ATLANTA) — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it is investigating reports of 18 salmonella infections across six states — California, Idaho, Missouri, Oregon, Utah and Washington. Two people have been hospitalized but no deaths have been reported in connection with the outbreak.
Multiple cases have been linked back to Papa Murphy’s raw chocolate chip cookie dough and s’mores bars dough that are sold at Papa Murphy’s Take ‘N’ Bake Pizza stores, according to the CDC.
Nine of the sickened people reported that they ate Papa Murphy’s raw cookie dough in the week before they got sick. Papa Murphy’s has temporarily stopped selling the two types of dough, according to the CDC.
At least two sick people said they did not eat at Papa Murphy’s. Investigators are working to identify the contaminated ingredient in the cookie dough, the CDC said.
The true number of sick people is likely higher than the number reported, and the outbreaks may not be limited to the states with known illnesses. Some people recover without medical care and are not tested for salmonella, according to the CDC.
Most people infected with salmonella experience symptoms including diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps, which usually start between six hours to six days after ingesting the bacteria, according to the CDC.
Anyone experiencing more severe symptoms — including diarrhea and a fever higher than 102 degrees; diarrhea for more than three days that is not improving; bloody diarrhea; so much vomiting that you cannot keep liquids down or signs of dehydration — should call their health care provider.
Most people recover without treatment after four to seven days, according to the CDC.
Some may experience more severe illness that requires medical treatment or hospitalization, including those with weakened immune systems, children under 5 and adults 65 years and older, the CDC said.
Anyone with Papa Murphy’s chocolate chip cookie dough or s’mores bars dough in their freezer or refrigerator should throw it out, even if they didn’t get sick after eating some of it, the CDC said.
Items and surfaces that may have touched the dough should be washed using hot, soapy water or a dishwasher. Papa Murphy’s chocolate chip cookie dough and s’mores bars dough are not meant to be eaten raw, according to the CDC.
Most raw cookie dough is made with unpasteurized eggs or raw flour and can have germs like salmonella and E. coli, according to the CDC.
There are some other cookie dough options that do not need to be baked because they are made with heat-treated flour and pasteurized eggs or no eggs, which is noted on the label, according to the CDC.
(COLUMBIA, S.C.) — South Carolina’s state Senate has passed a six-week abortion ban, sending the bill to the governor’s desk where it is expected to be signed into law.
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster signed a previous so-called “heartbeat ban” into law in 2021, but it was struck down by the state’s Supreme Court in January.
Fifteen states have ceased nearly all abortion services since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, ending federal protections for abortion rights.
The new ban prohibits all abortions after fetal cardiac activity is detected, which generally occurs at six weeks of pregnancy, with limited exceptions, according to the ban.
Abortions are permitted to prevent the death of the pregnant woman, to prevent the serious risk of a substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function, in cases of rape and incest and if the fetus has a fatal anomaly, according to the ban. The exception does not include psychological and emotional conditions.
Conditions listed under the exception include molar pregnancy, partial molar pregnancy, blighted ovum, ectopic pregnancy, severe preeclampsia, HELLP syndrome, abruptio placentae, severe physical maternal trauma, uterine rupture, intrauterine fetal demise and miscarriage, according to the bill.
Anyone who violates the ban is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, must be fined $10,000, face prison time of up to two years or both. Physicians or medical providers found guilty of performing illegal abortions will also have their licenses revoked.
Planned Parenthood said, along with its partners, that it is prepared to challenge the ban in court.
“Abortion is already difficult to access in South Carolina, with only three abortion clinics in the state and a range of limitations on access imposed by state lawmakers. South Carolina ranks 43rd — in the bottom 10 of all states — with the highest maternal mortality rates. Women here are three times more likely to die during pregnancy or childbirth than the average U.S. woman,” Planned Parenthood said in a statement.
‘Sister senators’ fight against ban
A group of five women senators, the only five in the legislative body, has fought against the bill. The group, who’ve adopted the term “sister senators,” told ABC News that a short holiday week near the end of the legislation session would be the time the men would “shove it down our throats.”
Even before the vote they had a sense that a back-room deal had been made to get it through. After three attempts, the senators’ filibuster failed to block the bill from passing.
“Women are 51% of the South Carolina population [but hold] only 14% of the General Assembly and even less than that in the Senate. What I believe is that women are going to show up at the ballot box,” state Sen. Sandy Senn said.
The group of women are very different — three Republicans, one Democrat and one independent — but they are all religious mothers who are certain this bill passing in the state Senate would be bad for women in the state. None of them viewed themselves as women’s rights advocates or feminists and they all said they were “pro-life.”
“We all believe in life. We believe in life for the woman as well as a life for the child,” state Sen. Margie Bright-Matthews told ABC News.
They needed two men to cross over to vote with them on Tuesday to block the ban, but one of their previous allies had gone dark, which they knew wasn’t a good sign.
Abortion options for women in the Deep South are now closing fast, with Florida’s six-week ban awaiting a court ruling soon and North Carolina’s 12-week ban taking effect.
What is in the ban?
Women will be required to have to in-person doctors appointments before they can receive an abortion.
Under the ban, pregnant women cannot be criminally prosecuted or face civil liability for violations of the ban.
If the fetus is alive in utero, physicians are required to make reasonable efforts to preserve the life of the unborn child, provided that does not pose a risk to the health of the pregnant women, according to the bill. Entities that violate this will be fined up to $50,000, according to the bill.
Physicians who perform abortions under the health exceptions have to rationalize why they believe the woman qualifies for the exception in her medical records, according to the bill.
Abortions performed under the rape and incest exceptions must report it to the sheriff in the county in which the abortion was performed within 24 hours. Physicians must tell the patient they will report the rape before the abortion is performed.
Physicians are also required to maintain a copy of the patient’s records for seven years after an abortion is performed under the exception. Failing to do so would be a felony with up to two years of imprisonment and a $10,000 fine on the physician, according to the bill.
Pregnant women upon whom an abortion is performed in violation of the law can seek actual and punitive damages against the violator.
(NEW YORK) — A woman is sharing her experience with polycystic ovary syndrome, or PCOS, to put a spotlight on a community at greater risk of the condition: women of South Asian descent.
Varsha Singh of Pennsylvania told ABC News’ Good Morning America that she struggled with symptoms for over a decade before being diagnosed with PCOS in her mid-20s.
“My hair was shedding more over time, and coupled with having an irregular period, I knew something was off,” Singh said, adding, “I was not given any kind of support that I wish I had.”
The condition Singh, 31, was ultimately diagnosed with, PCOS, is a female hormone imbalance in which the ovaries produce excessive amounts of testosterone and, in some cases, form small ovarian cysts, according to the U.S. Office on Women’s Health.
Symptoms of PCOS can include everything from irregular or absent periods to excessive facial hair, acne and obesity. The exact cause of PCOS is not known.
The condition affects 1 in 10 women of childbearing age, according to the Office on Women’s Health.
People of South Asian descent are at even higher risk for PCOS, multiple studies show.
One study, based in the United Kingdom, estimated nearly 50% of South Asians had polycystic ovaries (PCO), which is one criteria of PCOS.
Another study published in 2021 found that the prevalence of PCOS in South Asian women was 3.3%, compared to 1% for Chinese women and 1.5% for Filipina women.
“People who are of South Asian descent tend to present with symptoms at a younger age and have more severe hirsutism, or that high level of male hormone in the body,” Dr. Fatima Daoud Yilmaz, a New York-based, board-certified OB-GYN, told GMA, adding that there is a need for more research and visibility on people of South Asian descent with PCOS.
“We shouldn’t be comparing everyone to a default of a Caucasian person, but rather comparing you to people who have a similar origin that you do,” Daoud Yilmaz said.
A diagnosis of PCOS requires two of three criteria: Irregular ovulation, which is usually indicated by an irregular menstrual cycle or a lack of a cycle; increased androgen levels; and multiple small cysts on the ovaries.
After she was diagnosed, Singh started chronicling her journey with PCOS online, in the hopes that she might help other people.
She said for her, lifestyle changes including diet and exercise made a difference in treating the condition.
“I had more time to learn how to work out the right way for me and how to meal prep and cook healthy foods,” Singh said. “Within three months, my body was showing improvements.”
She continued, “I’m doing yoga and meditating. Now it’s a lifestyle practice for me.”
Other treatment options to manage PCOS symptoms include hormonal birth control and anti-androgen medicines as well as weight loss, according to the Office on Women’s Health.
