Abortion and the midterms

Also: Preventive options for RSV; an interview with Admiral Rachel Levine [View in browser](    [❤️]( November 8, 2022 Hi CommonHealth reader, When the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade this summer, abortion quickly emerged as a campaign issue. Now, it’s finally Election Day, and in many states, abortion is [on the ballot]( [Ballot questions]( in a handful of states, including Michigan and Vermont, will give voters a direct say in whether abortion should be constitutionally protected. In other states, races for governor and the legislature may determine what happens with abortion rights. And then there is Congress. The party that ends up in control could push legislation that affects the entire country. Polling shows that [inflation is the top issue]( for voters in this midterm election, though abortion rights could be a driving force for some voters. "Voters are whole people; they carry their whole selves into the ballot box," Laphonza Butler, president of Emily's List, told [NPR’s Sarah McCammon](. "And what we have experienced as a nation is that our economy ebbs and flows — but once our fundamental freedoms are taken away, we don't know if we're ever going to be able to get that back." Of course, we’re all affected by what happens nationally, but Massachusetts feels like a bit of a bubble this campaign season. Abortion rights are enshrined in state law. The Democratic candidate for governor, Maura Healey, said [she’ll work to protect those rights]( and Republican candidate Geoff Diehl says he won’t try to roll them back, even though he personally opposes abortion. Health care is on the ballot in Massachusetts in a different way: Question 2 asks voters whether the state should impose new regulations on the spending of dental insurance companies. My colleague Gabrielle Emanuel [broke that down here](. Whatever happens today, [it may take a while]( to count all the votes and fully understand the implications. P.S.— WBUR will carry live coverage of local and national election results [on air at 90.9 FM]( and [online at wbur.org]( beginning at 8 p.m. tonight. You can check real-time results on our online dashboard and read coverage that helps you understand what's unfolding near and far. Priyanka Dayal McCluskey Senior Health Reporter [Follow]( Support the news  This Week's Must Reads [8 Mass. communities stopped putting fluoride in tap water over the past year due to supply shortages]( Fluoride shortages have impacted roughly 250,000 residents in Fall River, Holden, Medway, Natick, North Attleboro, Rutland, Shrewsbury and Swansea. Dentists say over time this can affect oral health. [Read more.]( [8 Mass. communities stopped putting fluoride in tap water over the past year due to supply shortages]( Fluoride shortages have impacted roughly 250,000 residents in Fall River, Holden, Medway, Natick, North Attleboro, Rutland, Shrewsbury and Swansea. Dentists say over time this can affect oral health. [Read more.]( [Mass General Brigham tells patients it won't tolerate threats or harassment of health care workers]( Massachusetts' biggest hospital system is implementing a new code of conduct that aims to protect its workers from threats and harassment, including racist comments, by patients and visitors. [Read more.]( [Mass General Brigham tells patients it won't tolerate threats or harassment of health care workers]( Massachusetts' biggest hospital system is implementing a new code of conduct that aims to protect its workers from threats and harassment, including racist comments, by patients and visitors. [Read more.]( [New VA study finds Paxlovid may cut the risk of long COVID]( For those at high risk, Pfizer's antiviral drug helps stave off severe COVID-19. Now research suggests it may also reduce their chances of long COVID. [Read more.]( [New VA study finds Paxlovid may cut the risk of long COVID]( For those at high risk, Pfizer's antiviral drug helps stave off severe COVID-19. Now research suggests it may also reduce their chances of long COVID. [Read more.]( [Hospitals and insurers tangle over rising health care costs]( Consumers and businesses already struggle to pay premiums. Now, staffing shortages and inflation are driving up costs. [Read more.]( [Hospitals and insurers tangle over rising health care costs]( Consumers and businesses already struggle to pay premiums. Now, staffing shortages and inflation are driving up costs. [Read more.]( [Top U.S. transgender official visits Massachusetts after anti-trans attacks]( Admiral Rachel Levine, the highest ranking transgender official in the U.S., says she’s optimistic anti-trans campaigns will eventually fade. But they might get worse, Levine warns, before they do. [Read more.]( [Top U.S. transgender official visits Massachusetts after anti-trans attacks]( Admiral Rachel Levine, the highest ranking transgender official in the U.S., says she’s optimistic anti-trans campaigns will eventually fade. But they might get worse, Levine warns, before they do. [Read more.]( What We're Reading 📚 By now you’ve probably heard about RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus. It's mild for many of us but can be more serious for babies, leading to hospitalizations and even deaths. And cases are surging this fall. "It is, unfortunately, one of those large killers that nobody knows about," Dr. Keith Klugman, of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, [told the New York Times](. But the Times’ Apoorva Mandavilli reports that after decades of stalled progress on RSV, more than 30 preventive options are on the horizon, nine of them in advanced trials. There are challenges to protecting the youngest babies who are most at risk from RSV. In newborns, there isn’t enough time for vaccines to build immunity. One option is to give these babies a monoclonal antibody, but the Times reports that it is rarely used because it is prohibitively expensive. Another alternative is to immunize pregnant women with a vaccine, which could pass on protection to their babies for a few months. "Ironically, perhaps, if these outbreaks have a useful purpose, it will be to make R.S.V. better known," Klugman said, "so that when the vaccines arrive, there will be enthusiastic opportunity for women to protect their babies." "We are actually at a breaking point, and patient care is at the risk of being compromised." — Dr. Anne Klibanski, CEO of Mass General Brigham, on how [hospitals are struggling]( to take care of sick patients ICYMI [Patients face delays as hospitals struggle to fill 19,000 jobs, report finds]( The analysis from the Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association describes a health system in crisis, with too many sick patients and not enough workers to take care of them. [Read more.]( [Patients face delays as hospitals struggle to fill 19,000 jobs, report finds]( The analysis from the Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association describes a health system in crisis, with too many sick patients and not enough workers to take care of them. [Read more.]( 🧠💥 Did you know...💥🧠 Do turtles talk? [A new study says yes](. A biologist recorded 50 species of turtles and found that none of them were mute. But it will take more research to figure out just what the animals are saying. 😎 Forward to a friend. They can sign up [here](. 📣 Give us your feedback: newsletters@wbur.org 📧 Get more WBUR stories sent to your inbox. [Check out all of our newsletter offerings.]( Support the news     Want to change how you receive these emails? Stop getting this newsletter by [updating your preferences.](  I don't want to hear from WBUR anymore. Unsubscribe from all WBUR editorial newsletters [here.](  Interested in learning more about corporate sponsorship? [Click here.]( Copyright © 2022 WBUR-FM, All rights reserved.