Since the US Supreme Court overturned constitutional abortion protections in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization in June 2022, abortion access has splintered nationwide.

Thirteen states now ban the procedure with limited exceptions, and seven states limit it to between six and 15 weeks gestational age as of October 7, according to the New York Times’s abortion ban tracker.

But that could soon change: Abortion protections will be on the ballot in 10 states this November, including five—Arizona, Florida, Missouri, Nebraska, and South Dakota—where there are abortion restrictions or bans in place, according to KFF. The measures propose an amendment to the respective state constitution that would protect abortion or allow it up to fetal viability, when the fetus can survive outside the womb. This varies by pregnancy but typically can’t happen until after 23 weeks gestation, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

“These ballot measures are a critical strategy to restoring and regaining access in some of these states,” Olivia Cappello, associate director of state advocacy communications for the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, told Healthcare Brew.

Clinics are struggling. Yet some clinics in states where abortion is on the ballot, like Florida, are fighting to stay open until then.

Keep reading here.—CC

Breast Cancer Awareness Month is officially here, and with it comes a flood of new information and updates around the most common cancer among women and the second leading cause of death in the US (behind only heart disease). Here’s a rundown of what’s new.

New rule. Last month, the FDA started enforcing a 2023 rule in the Mammography Quality Standards Act that requires radiology and mammography facilities to notify patients about the density of their breasts.

“If there’s more density, it’s a little bit harder for [clinicians] to find an early-stage breast cancer on the mammogram,” Douglas Feil, chief program officer at the National Breast Cancer Foundation, told Healthcare Brew. “We know that women with higher breast density are more likely to develop breast cancer in their lifetime.”

About 10% of women have extremely dense breasts, according to the CDC, and 40% of women have breasts that are evenly dense throughout. Another 40% of women have breasts that have a few areas of dense tissue, while 10% of women have breasts that are entirely fatty. Women with dense breasts have a higher risk of breast cancer, according to the National Cancer Institute.

Keep reading here.—CM

The US is struggling to address a yearslong IV supply shortage following two back-to-back hurricanes.

A major IV manufacturing site and distribution center in Daytona Beach, Florida, operated by B. Braun Medical is “intact” following Hurricane Milton, director of corporate communications Allison Longenhagen told Healthcare Brew on Thursday. The New York Times reported that B. Braun manufactures about a quarter of the nation’s total IV fluids.

“Our Daytona Beach IV solutions manufacturing site and distribution center were not seriously impacted by Hurricane Milton and will resume operations as planned on Friday morning,” Longenhagen said.

The center closed on Wednesday morning and is set to reopen Friday at 8am, according to a statement on B. Braun’s website.

Ahead of the hurricane’s landfall on Wednesday night, the federal Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) helped the company move more than 60 truckloads of IV solutions to a secure facility north of Florida, Longenhagen said.

Keep reading here.—CC

Go ahead, buck tradition. If typical healthcare roles aren’t your thing, you might wanna check out the latest episode of Game On! by Indeed. Michael Metzner—a physician turned producer for Grey’s Anatomy—discusses his career, dishes out advice, and offers insight on nontraditional healthcare roles. Check it out.