from States Newsroom
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By Elisha Brown |
Chase Johnson of Cary, North Carolina, is among the cancer survivors and patients participating in a clinical trial for a new breast cancer vaccine. (Photo courtesy of Chase Johnson)
Chase Johnson was just 31 when doctors diagnosed her with breast cancer five years ago. She underwent chemotherapy, radiation and surgery in 2022 and was declared cancer free, but she feared the disease would return and decided to enroll in a clinical trial to test a new breast cancer vaccine.
“It’s just so promising and as a patient, it gave me a lot of hope,” said Johnson. “I feel much more protected having done it.”
There’s been a wave of new vaccines for cancer in the past 20 years. But now, experts worry that vaccine misinformation — amplified by the Trump administration — may turn people away from important medical advances, Stateline’s Sofia Resnick reports.
Take the human papillomavirus vaccine for example. Some forms of HPV, spread through sex, can cause cervical and various other cancers. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the HPV vaccine in 2006, and it’s recommended for preteens.
Before being appointed to lead the nation’s top health agency, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. filed complaints and lawsuits against Merck, the maker of the HPV vaccine. He also spread unfounded claims on social media about links between the vaccine and risks of cervical cancer.
HPV vaccination rates among teenagers have remained stagnant in recent years. Last year, 63% of Americans ages 13-17 had received all their HPV shots, according to federal data.
A 2024 study found that HPV misinformation is widespread online.
“I don’t think we can overstate the impact that the pandemic and the misinformation and disinformation around vaccines has had on all vaccines, including HPV vaccine,” said Dannell Boatman, the study’s coauthor and an assistant professor at the West Virginia University Cancer Institute.
THE BEAT
WISCONSIN
Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin files constitutional challenge to state abortion restrictions: Wisconsin’s Planned Parenthood affiliate is suing the state over laws that require a consultation with a doctor 24 hours before an abortion and only allow physicians to provide abortions. The reproductive health organization, which has three clinics in the state, is seeking to establish a right to abortion in the Wisconsin Constitution. Planned Parenthood Wisconsin has sued to codify abortion rights before, but the state’s high court dismissed the case last year after it ruled that an 1849 abortion ban was moot. — Wisconsin Examiner
MISSOURI
Latest Missouri poll finds opinions split ahead of November vote on abortion: Missourians are split on whether to vote for a ballot measure that would ban most abortions and prohibit gender-affirming care for minors, a new poll found. About 44% oppose the ban, 43% support it, and 13% are unsure, according to a Saint Louis University survey. The margin of error was plus or minus 4 percentage points. The measure will be called Amendment 3, the same name as the reproductive rights question most voters in the state approved in 2024. — Missouri Independent
TEXAS
Alaskan surrogate does not have custody over child she birthed in Texas, judge rules: A Texas judge ruled that an Alaskan surrogate who gave birth to a child with a major heart defect in Dallas last month does not have custody over the baby, whose biological parents are Californians. The woman’s lawyers have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene in the case. She left Alaska to give birth in Texas this summer after the baby was diagnosed with a heart condition that led his parents to consider abortion. — The Texas Tribune
Childcare business owners Ray Jaramillo, Daisy Lira and Angela Garcia share their struggles with the New Mexico legislature’s Economic and Rural Development and Policy Committee on Sept. 9, 2026. (Photo by Leah Romero for Source NM)
NEW MEXICO
New Mexico childcare providers struggle as demand, waitlists increase: One year after New Mexico became the first state in the nation to offer universal childcare, leaders of childcare centers are struggling to keep up with the demand for the initiative. There are 47,000 children enrolled in the program, but state officials expect the number to grow to 58,000 in the next year. Childcare business leaders asked lawmakers to ease reporting requirements for providers, increase reimbursement rates and streamline the program’s funding. — Source New Mexico
INDIANA
Indiana Supreme Court weighs limits of religious exemptions to abortion ban: Indiana Supreme Court justices questioned the legal director of the state American Civil Liberties Union affiliate and the state’s solicitor general last week about whether there should be religious exceptions to Indiana’s abortion ban. The lawyer for the state argued that Hoosier Jews for Choice and other plaintiffs have brought hypothetical questions to the court that don’t pose immediate harm because the plaintiffs aren’t pregnant. But the ACLU legal director said the ban is already shaping uncertainty in the plaintiffs’ lives. — Indiana Capital Chronicle
LOUISIANA
Louisiana AG returns to 5th Circuit seeking end to telehealth abortion meds: In an appearance at the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans last week, Louisiana Republican Attorney General Liz Murrill said the courts should immediately reinstate a rule that required providers to have an in-person visit to prescribe abortion pills. Murrill, a Republican, is suing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and federal health officials over the regulation. She also said she believes that Dr. Heidi Overton, President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the FDA, will restrict access to mifepristone if confirmed. — Louisiana Illuminator
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THE PULSE
AR: Walmart heirs pledge $100M for national campaign to cut maternal deaths | Arkansas Advocate
WV: Women’s Health Center of West Virginia launches campaign promoting abortion pills | West Virginia Watch
ABORTION ACCESS IN THE U.S.
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