Abortions in Ohio fell after federal protections for the procedure were overturned. House Republicans passed two bills affecting transgender children, and Democrats backed a medical freedom bill.
We break down what it all means on this week’s episode of Ohio Politics Explained. A podcast created by the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau to get you up to speed on the state’s political news in 15 minutes or less.
This week, anchor Anna Staver was joined by reporter Haley BeMiller.
Post-Roe Ohio
This week marks one year since the US Supreme Court struck down federal protections for abortion, and access in Ohio is still a complicated issue.
A Hamilton County judge temporarily halted the state’s 2019 abortion law, which banned nearly all abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy. But the case is pending before the Ohio Supreme Court and could be reversed.
Abortion access supporters are trying to amend the state constitution in November to include the right to the procedure, but opponents have put another amendment on the August ballot that would make that much more difficult.
Transgender legislation
Two bills that would change the way transgender children in Ohio interact with their schools and doctors passed the Ohio House this week.
The first bill would ban all but talk therapy for transgender minors, and those currently taking hormones or puberty blockers would have to stop or leave Ohio. This legislation would also prohibit transgender girls from joining girls’ sports teams in high school and college.
The second bill focused on parental notification rights in education. It would require schools to alert parents before introducing any “sexual content”. Critics said the term was defined as broadly as possible and would likely prevent teachers from discussing the existence of LGBTQ people or characters. It would also require teachers to tell parents if their children are questioning their gender identity.
Protests at drag events on the rise
Drag events have taken center stage in the fight for LGBTQ rights recently, as opponents accuse performers of grooming children.
Their shows, especially those advertised as family-friendly, were the most common type of LGBTQ event to report violence, assault or harassment from June 2022 to April 2023, according to a report published Thursday in morning by the Anti-Defamation League and the LGBTQ organization. GLAAD.
And about half of those incidents involved neo-Nazis or other white supremacist groups.
Off-label medication
Doctors regularly prescribe drugs for conditions other than those approved by the US Food and Drug Administration. This is a practice known as off-label use, and it became controversial during the COVID-19 pandemic when some patients began demanding medications such as hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malaria drug.
House Bill 73which passed the House 73-17 on Wednesday, would protect doctors and require pharmacies to dispense off-label prescriptions unless they have religious or moral objections.
Listen to “Ohio Politics Explained” on Spotify, Apple, Google Podcasts and TuneIn Radio. The episode is also available by clicking the link in this article.
USA TODAY Network’s Ohio bureau serves The Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 affiliated news organizations throughout Ohio.
