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The pandemic has exacerbated economic disparities in America, taking a heavier toll on women, people of color and those who don’t have a college education. But millions without health insurance have benefited during the public health emergency — by getting new coverage, paying less for it or simply not being thrown off their existing Medicaid plan. Through August, just over 1.4 million Texans had enrolled and paid for insurance through HealthCare.gov, the federal marketplace for individuals and families. That’s an increase of nearly half a million customers since 2019, and it is easily the state’s highest enrollment yet. (Schnurman, 10/8)

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill Friday to require public schools to stock their restrooms with free menstrual products. The legislation comes after many women's rights advocates have pushed nationwide for affordable access to pads, tampons and other women's hygiene products. The requirement follows in the footsteps of many other states, like Washington and Illinois, which passed similar laws this year. (Frazier, 10/9)

California became the first state in the nation Saturday to adopt a law requiring large retail stores to provide gender-neutral toy sections under a bill signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom. The new law, which takes effect in 2024, says that retail stores with 500 or more employees must sell some toys and child-care products outside of areas specifically labeled by gender. Retailers can continue to offer other toys and child-care goods in traditional boys and girls sections if they choose to. (Luna, 10/9)

The Tennessee Department of Correction now has a suicide prevention hotline which friends and family of inmates can call if they are concerned about their loved one, the department announced. Calls will be will be routed to the department’s Central Communication Center, which is staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Analysts at the center will notify the facility where the inmate is housed so intervention can take place immediately. (10/11)

Maryland officials moved another step forward with plans for a large new mental illness and substance abuse treatment center for certain nonviolent offenders in Baltimore. The Department of General Services has issued a request for proposal for a design and construction consultant who would oversee various aspects of the planned Baltimore Treatment and Therapeutic Center, which officials say is expected to take around 10 years and cost more than $450 million to complete. (Davis, 10/9)

Alachua County Fire Rescue is now the proud owner of three Lund University Cardiopulmonary Assist Systems (LUCAS), lifesaving devices that can apply nonstop mechanical chest compressions to cardiac arrest victims. “Time is tissue,” said Rescue Lt. Sam Harper, a firefighter with 13 years of experience, “the more time we have good compression on a patient, the better the outcome for that patient.” ACFR usually sees about 150 to 190 cardiac arrest cases each year, however in the past year the community has seen an increase in cases due to COVID-19 and limited hospital space, said Assistant Chief Michael Cowart. (Rickard, 10/10)

More than 100 families who arrived in Massachusetts in recent weeks after surviving turmoil in Haiti have been left with no resources or legal assistance, according to advocates and officials, setting off a scramble to provide essentials such as housing and medical care. The crisis facing the Haitian arrivals — many of whom were trapped in squalid conditions near a bridge along the US border with Mexico — is compounded by federal efforts to send them back to Haiti despite that country’s social unrest and poverty, advocates said. If not for grass-roots efforts to provide for these people, the advocates said, many would have found themselves living on the street. The aid has included access to medical care, as well as housing, food, clothing, and pro-bono legal assistance. (Hilliard, 10/10)

Civil rights activists are condemning the arrest of a Black man with paraplegia in Dayton, Ohio, who was seen in newly released body-camera video being pulled from his car during a traffic stop last week as he yelled for help and told officers he cannot use his legs. (Bellware, 10/9)