Focused search for life issues

51+ min ago (411+ words) The U.S. House of Representatives passed a $901 billion defense authorization bill Wednesday stripped of a controversial provision that would have required insurance coverage for in vitro fertilization for military families That move is drawing praise from pro-life organizations that hailed the move as a stand against the destruction of human embryos. The National Defense Authorization Act, known as the NDAA and formally designated S. 1071, cleared the House by a vote of 312-112. The measure now heads to the Senate for consideration. The IVF language, which passed both chambers earlier this year, was dropped from the final negotiated version unveiled over the weekend. Under the removed provision, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth would have been directed to ensure that fertility-related care, including IVF, was covered under the TRICARE Prime and TRICARE Select health plans for active-duty service members and their dependents. TRICARE currently does not…...

1+ hour, 17+ min ago (678+ words) Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., is demanding answers from Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary after he declined to give The Daily Signal a time frame for his review on the abortion pill. " Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) December 10, 2025 Makary told The Daily Signal Tuesday that the review of the abortion drug mifepristone is in the "data acquisition phase," following a Bloomberg report saying he is delaying the process until after midterms. "We do an ongoing review, but we're also engaging in a robust study that can serve to validate or not validate other numbers that have been put out there in the literature," the FDA chief said. Makary and Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. have pledged to do a review of the safety of abortion drugs. But Hawley said it is unclear if Makary is "conducting…...

1+ hour, 36+ min ago (546+ words) BOSTON " When a friend introduced Nyajea to Roca, a violence intervention program, she wasn't interested. After she lost custody of her son, she decided to go to Roca in Springfield to better her life. It wasn't easy, especially after her second child, a daughter, was taken by the Department of Children and Families, but she stuck with the program. "Now I'm in a transitional housing program," she said. "My daughter will be home on Friday, and I'm getting my life together, and things are coming into place for me and my family." At the event Tuesday, Roca released an evaluation completed by Tufts University's Interdisciplinary Evaluation Research that looks at Roca's program for young mothers who have experienced acute trauma. The two-year pilot program received state funding and partnered with the Office of the Child Advocate. At several locations in…...

2+ hour, 51+ min ago (983+ words) CNA Staff, Dec 11, 2025 / 09:30 am When Virginia father Tom Vander Woude's 19-year-old son, a boy with Down syndrome, fell into a toxic sewage tank, Tom jumped into the tank with him, pushing him to the surface even as the toxic fumes filled his own lungs. The father of seven, whose sainthood cause is now under investigation, will be posthumously awarded this year's Walk for Life "Saint Gianna Molla Award for Pro-Life Heroism" on Jan. 24, 2026 at the West Coast Walk for Life in San Francisco." "When we heard Tom's story years ago, we were touched by the love of a father for his child," Dolores Meehan, co-chair of the West Coast Walk for Life, told CNA. "The fact that his son has Down syndrome made it all the more important to share his story of love and sacrifice and joy." Unborn children…...

5+ hour, 21+ min ago (1220+ words) A congressional fight over abortion coverage in Obamacare plans is shaping up as an existential battle for anti-abortion organizations." Anti-abortion advocates have ramped up the pressure on Republicans as the legislature attempts to hammer out a solution to the expiration of enhanced subsidies for Affordable Care Act insurance plans passed by Democrats as part of COVID-19 pandemic relief efforts, even as the White House has reportedly asked the activists to stand down." Opponents of abortion have long argued that subsidies for plans offered through the Obamacare exchanges effectively allow for federal dollars to flow to abortion services." Because Obamacare is not funded annually through the appropriations process, it is not required to follow the rules of the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits federal funding for abortions, except in rare instances of rape, incest, or life-threatening complications. But President Donald Trump and…...

7+ hour, 10+ min ago (189+ words) Over the last three decades, more than 60 nations have reformed their abortion laws while only four have rolled abortion rights back: Poland, El Salvador, Nicaragua " and now, the United States. Last Month, the United States was scheduled to appear before the United Nations for the Universal Periodic Review'a human rights assessment that every UN member state undergoes every 4.5 years. Despite participating in all previous reviews, this year, the Trump Administration boycotted, signaling a disregard for the obligation to comply with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Rep. Jamie Raskin (MD-08)said: Congressman Troy A. Carter, Sr. (LA-02)said: "Access to safe, legal abortion is healthcare. It's as fundamental as any other medical service. I'm proud to support this resolution because it sends a message that no matter where you live in this country, your rights to make decisions about your body and…...

7+ hour, 25+ min ago (618+ words) Openly pro-abortion Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin, whose staff "could not identify a single complaint [against it]demanded that First Choice turn over years of sensitive internal information'including donor information about nearly 5,000 contributions." December 11, 2025 Charles J. Russo The Dispatch 0 Print On December 2, 2025, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in'First Choice Women's Resource Center v. Platkin, a potentially far-reaching dispute over whether public officials could, without justification, investigate the activities of a faith-based, pro-life organization. New Jersey officials sought to compel First Choice Women's Resource Center'whose staff members "encourage and equip women and men to make informed pregnancy decisions'to disclose the names of donors over unfounded allegations that it may have misled them and clients about its pro-life activities. Due to the hostility officials demonstrated toward First Choice, this column initially reviews the dispute's judicial history before highlighting the Supreme Court's oral arguments and…...

12+ hour, 18+ min ago (176+ words) According to the recent presidential message celebrating the Virgin Mary's own conception without any stain of original sin, "God became man when Mary gave birth to a son, Jesus, who The post Memo to the White House: God became man at conception appeared first on The Catholic Thing. According to the recent presidential message celebrating the Virgin Mary's own conception without any stain of original sin, "God became man when Mary gave birth to a son, Jesus, who would go on to offer his life on the Cross for the redemption of sins and the salvation of the world" [emphasis added]. The presidential message's error about who Jesus already was in the womb might have political as well as theological implications. It could be part of the reason why the administration was willing recently to authorize federal funding for IVF…...

16+ hour, 12+ min ago (628+ words) By'Kate Cavanaugh for CNA December 10, 2025 Catholic News Agency News Briefs 0 Print CNA Staff, Dec 10, 2025 / 18:30 pm Pro-life advocates are calling for action as top federal health officials deny reports that they are delaying a promised safety review of the abortion pill. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, "has delayed a promised review of safety data" until after midterm elections at Commissioner Marty Makary's request, a Tuesday'report'by Bloomberg Law claimed, citing unnamed sources. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has denied the claim, saying it is "baseless." "Assertions that the FDA is slow walking this review for political purposes are baseless," an HHS spokesperson told CNA. "FDA takes the time necessary to conduct comprehensive scientific reviews, and that is what Dr. Makary is ensuring as part of the Department's commitment…...

17+ hour, 14+ min ago (385+ words) Actress Patricia Heaton, best known from'Everybody Loves Raymond, is using her voice to call out something deeply disturbing happening in Iceland, and the way the media is talking about it. It started when CBS posted a tweet that almost sounded like praise. The tweet highlighted how Iceland has nearly gotten rid of Down syndrome in their country. But the way they've done it is not through medical breakthroughs or better support.'It's through abortion. According to CBS' own report, Iceland has one main hospital where nearly all babies are born, and nearly all abortions happen. When a woman finds out her baby has Down syndrome,'almost 100%'choose abortion. That means Iceland hasn't "reduced" Down syndrome. They've nearly eliminated the people who have it. Patricia Heaton didn't hold back. She responded to the CBS tweet by saying: "Iceland isn't actually eliminating…...