For those confused by state of play on SNAP right now: You're not alone Yesterday, *before* SCOTUS paused order telling Trump admin to send out SNAP $$, a handful of states rushed to issue full SNAP benefits to at least part of their caseload. This includes CA, OR, WA, MI, and WI—all blue states (🧵)

OutKast is inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: “We started in a little room. Great things start in little rooms”

BREAKING: Full November SNAP benefits to be issued by Trump administration despite shutdown. @statesnewsroom.com story:

@usdagov.bsky.social confirms it has provided this guidance to all states.

FYI. Buses have been free in Chapel Hill and Carrboro North Carolina for over 20 years. See: chapelboro.com/news/news-tr...

Arizona abortion providers urged a Maricopa Superior Court judge this week to block a series of anti-abortion laws they claim unreasonably burden patients and violate the Arizona Constitution, report @azmirror.com and @statesnewsroom.com buff.ly/p76W07y

New from me: Voters in NJ and VA elected Democratic women governors who vowed to protect abortion access. Dems swept the VA races, too, basically ensuring a repro ballot measure in 2026. And PA retained 3 judges bound to take up abortion-related cases. www.newsfromthestates.com/article/demo...

A federal judge on Saturday issued a written order saying there is “no question” that U.S. Department of Agriculture contingency funds must be used to provide food assistance for 42 million Americans during the government shutdown. ncnewsline.com/2025/11/01/r... By @janenorman.bsky.social #ncpol

Mothers demand TSA follow its own breast milk and formula rules @sofiaresnick.bsky.social kentuckylantern.com/2025/10/30/r...

The people who need SNAP assistance come from varying circumstances. I spoke with a woman in rural Idaho who needed food stamps after her partner died by suicide when she was 11 weeks pregnant. And some have pregnancies complicated by gestational diabetes — which requires a strict diet to control.

🚨New Roanoke College poll: • Spanberger (D) leads Earle-Sears (R) for governor 51–41% • Hashmi (D) and Reid (R) are neck-and-neck 42–40% • Miyares (R) holds an 8-point edge over Jones (D) for AG virginiamercury.com/2025/10/30/p...

As a pediatrician, she helped elevate breastfeeding from a medical afterthought to a specialty of its own. As a mother of nine, she practiced what she preached www.nytimes.com/2025/10/23/h...

NEW: A Department of Veterans Affairs memo obtained by ProPublica sets up new roadblocks to care for male veterans with breast cancer. The agency cites no new science but relies on an executive order about “restoring biological truth” in government.

CALLOUT: I'm working on a piece about pregnant people or those with newborns/infants who rely on SNAP/WIC, and I'd like to add personal stories to it. If you or someone you know is experiencing this right now or has relied on this program in the past with children, can you send me a DM? Thanks!

NEW w/ @meganmesserly.bsky.social: Trump's IVF policies came nowhere close to fulfilling his campaign trail pledge to make fertility treatments free. Anti-abortion activists, who lobbied the admin for more than a year, are claiming credit for that. www.politico.com/news/2025/10...

The Hebrew Israelites and Nation of Islam uncs are on the corner outside at Central’s homecoming game. I feel like I’m in Harlem again!

SIX DAYS UNTIL SNAP RUNS OUT FOR 42 MILLION PEOPLE: And just 25 days ago USDA said it would pay out food benefits during the shutdown. That memo has now been deleted from its website and a new memo out Friday says the opposite. Read our story 👇

"Journalism is about building relationships and if you go silent or only reach out when you need something it might be difficult to get ahead or stay in the industry long term." yourfirstbyline.substack.com/p/my-first-b...

On December 2, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in First Choice v. Platkin, a case stemming from a crisis pregnancy center's attempt to fight a subpoena from the NJ Attorney General. Technically, the question is simple: Is federal or state court the right venue for this fight? But...

Just in from @anitawadhwani.bsky.social: In a defeat for Gov. Bill Lee’s administration, a three-judge panel ruled against the state’s effort to end a longstanding lawsuit challenging the vagueness and inadequacy of exceptions to Tennessee’s near-total abortion ban.

A majority of Black adults in 10 states say Medicaid is important to them or their families, per a new poll shared exclusively with @statesnewsroom.com. The findings come as Planned Parenthood clinics in Black communities have closed due to Medicaid cuts. www.newsfromthestates.com/article/more...

Miraya Gran is the kind of person Trump and his administration say they are going to help. But unless the cost of IVF goes down a lot, she can’t afford to give her daughter a sibling. “I’ve got two embryos waiting for me, and I’m not accessing them due to lack of insurance coverage." New from me:

Kind of obsessed with this colorful lede-all from @ashleymurray.bsky.social featuring reporting from the great big @statesnewsroom.com family www.newsfromthestates.com/article/no-k...

New @georgiarecorder.com: The Planned Parenthood affiliate that covers Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi hired a law firm to investigate new leadership after a group of abortion-rights advocates said management is undermining the organization's mission. www.newsfromthestates.com/article/plan...

Via Jacob Fischler: Democratic U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren minimized the announcements, saying they fell short of providing the free IVF coverage Trump had pledged to work toward.

By the way, this move is directly out of the Heritage Foundation’s playbook, which calls for repurposing Title X funds.

Where else can you get 1 (one) email with policy news from all 50 (fifty!) states? Subscribe for loads of policy news + National Day reminders + pet photos (depending on how I'm feeling). Sign up for @stateline.org's newsletters today:

WIC — a food and nutrition program that helps millions of mothers and babies — is safe for now. www.newsfromthestates.com/article/nutr...

The Trump admin's recent warnings against pregnant women taking Tylenol, Covid shots and antidepressants clash with the mainstream medical consensus. But they also highlight a dangerous data vacuum -- one that's gotten worse since the fall of Roe v. Wade. www.politico.com/news/2025/10...

Democratic Gov. Janet Mills is supposed to announce a run for U.S. Senate next week, in an attempt to unseat Republican Susan Collins. via @mainemorningstar.com

Cervical cancer has a known path of prevention, but that also means it falls at the intersection of cultural issues that are facing strong political opposition.

Wait, so the prosecutor who indicted AG James and Comey is the same person who toured the Black history museum and said too much slavery?? Next episode please.

NEW: Planned Parenthood's Manhattan clinic will stop seeing patients as of November 1 as affiliate prepares to sell the building amid budget shortfalls. Sale announced in March Patients told to schedule at Bronx, Brooklyn, or Queens (LIC) clinics or virtual www.plannedparenthood.org/health-cente...

Another effort to restrict access to abortion pills: Louisiana is suing federal health officials over an FDA policy that allows mifepristone to be mailed to patients, @greglarose.bsky.social reports. www.newsfromthestates.com/article/loui...

Majorities disapprove of RFK Jr. performance, doubt autism-Tylenol claims, KFF poll finds. Story by @jennifershutt.bsky.social www.newsfromthestates.com/article/majo...

Ohio Republican lawmakers have introduced several bills to regulate abortion and reproductive health care despite the constitutional amendment approved by 57% of Ohio voters in 2023.

Medicaid patients lose quick access to basic care after Planned Parenthood cuts and closures. Advocates and providers say Black and Latino people with low incomes “bear the brunt” of funding losses. Part 2 by @elishabrown.bsky.social / @statesnewsroom.com: www.newsfromthestates.com/article/medi...

Over the weekend, Trump's deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller repeatedly attacked judges, calling them part of an "organized terrorist attack" on the US government.... On Saturday, the home of a judge who ruled against Trump, went up in flames time.com/7323442/sout...

NEW: Gov. Josh Stein signed a Republican-led bill aimed at addressing violent crime in North Carolina on Friday, praising its changes to the pre-trial release process but decrying changes to the death penalty that he described as “barbaric.” ncnewsline.com/2025/10/03/s... @galenb.bsky.social #ncpol

Colorado, Massachusetts, Washington and others are using state funds to keep doors open at family planning clinics. But advocates wonder how long the money will last, @sofiaresnick.bsky.social + @kelciemmorris.bsky.social report. www.newsfromthestates.com/article/some...

Part 5, from @kelciemmorris.bsky.social and me: Some Democratic-led states pledged to help fund family planning services. But it's not always enough. www.newsfromthestates.com/article/some...

The latest South Carolina abortion ban bill would prevent victims of rape and incest from getting an abortion, allow women to be prosecuted for getting one and make it illegal to help someone get care. www.newsfromthestates.com/article/anti...

More than 400 people were charged with pregnancy-related crimes during the two years after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned federal abortion rights, research released this week shows. by @elishabrown.bsky.social / @statesnewsroom.com www.newsfromthestates.com/article/pros...

Even with new cuts from the “big, beautiful bill,” Idaho’s last Planned Parenthood clinic is here to stay. Clinic leaders say it’s been a lifeline, and that Idaho couldn’t easily replace it. #idpol

Abortions make up a small portion of the services most Oregon Planned Parenthood affiliates provide, except in Ontario, where its the nearest place most Idahoans can legally receive one. oregoncapitalchronicle.com/2025/10/01/o...

Another one from me, this time focused on two places with many geographical hurdles that make accessing care difficult to begin with: Alaska and Hawaii

Part four our Unraveling Safety Net series heads to the Midwest: Federal funding cuts to Planned Parenthood could lead some patients to seek telehealth, but it's not a one-size-fits-all solution, @sofiaresnick.bsky.social reports. www.newsfromthestates.com/article/rest...

Another consequence of the Medicaid ban targeting reproductive health care providers that offer abortion. Maine Family Planning offered primary care at three clinics, but those patients will have to find another provider by Oct. 31.

NEW: Judge Matt Kacsmaryk transferred ongoing lawsuit against the FDA over abortion drug mifepristone to the Eastern District of Missouri. (Trump DOJ said AGs of Missouri, Kansas, Idaho couldn't sue in TX.) Denies motions to intervene from AGs of TX, FL, LA storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Kentucky has one of the highest rates of cervical cancer in the U.S. Planned Parenthood offers Pap smears and the HPV vaccine, but providers fear Medicaid cuts and anti-vax politics could reverse prevention efforts, @kelciemmorris.bsky.social reports. www.newsfromthestates.com/article/cerv...