OREGON MEASURE TO REQUIRE INSURERS TO COVER ABORTION
SALEM, ORE.» Insurance companies in Oregon would be required to cover abortions and other reproductive services at no cost to the patient regardless of income, citizenship status or gender identity under a measure approved Wednesday by lawmakers.
Oregon has some of the most liberal abortion laws in the U.S., leaving out otherwise common requirements for waiting periods or spending limits on taxpayer funds. The measure, which offers some religious-based exemptions, comes as the federal government and other states seek restrictions on abortion services.
The Democratic-controlled state Senate approved the measure 17-13 along party lines. It now heads to Democratic Gov. Kate Brown.
Scalise readmitted to intensive care. WASHINGTON»
The Washing-hospital where House Majority Whip Steve Scalise is recuperating from a gunshot wound says he has been readmitted to the intensive care unit. MedStar Washington Hospital Center says the Louisiana congressman is back in intensive care because of new concerns for infection. Scalise was in serious condition Wednesday night.
Gunman kills three people, wounds fourth before being shot dead by police. MADISON, MAINE»
A gunman shot and killed his partner, their adult son and a neighbor and wounded a fourth person before being fatally shot by deputies early Wednesday, leaving detectives at a loss to explain the violence, an official said. Three deputies ended the rampage by shooting 51-year-old Carroll Tuttle in a confrontation in his driveway, said Steve McCausland, a spokesman for the Maine Department of Public Safety. The shootings unfolded just hours after a neighbor said there had been a party with Fourth of July fireworks.
Rights group warns of bind for migrants as EU looks to Libya.
PARIS» Europe has made a dangerous turn on the Mediterranean Sea as it looks to Libya for help in slowing the number of migrants attempting to reach the continent in flimsy boats, Amnesty International said in a report released Thursday. The organization called the European Union’s strategy of training the Libyan coast guard to rescue migrants “reckless.”
By turning to Libya, the EU has created “A Perfect Storm” — the title of Amnesty’s report — that could hammer often-desperate migrants with a double vengeance. They face the risk of dying at sea or grave human rights abuses once they are returned to Libya and trapped there, the human rights group said.
Government supporters storm congress, injuring lawmakers. CARACAS,
VENEZUELA» Pro-government militias wielding wooden sticks and metal bars stormed congress Wednesday, attacking opposition lawmakers during a special session coinciding with Venezuela’s independence day. Four lawmakers were injured and blood was splattered on the neoclassical legislature’s white walls. One of them, Americo de Grazia, had to be removed in a stretcher while suffering from convulsions.