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The assault on women’s reproductive rights in state legislatures across the country has ramped up since the Supreme Court signaled in December that it might uphold a Mississippi ban on abortion at 15 weeks of gestation and dismantle the landmark ruling in Roe vs. Wade that protects a woman’s right to an abortion. (3/11)

Insulin has been making life better for people with diabetes since it first saved the life of a Canadian teenager in 1922. As the ensuing century passed, however, the drug also became a poster child for the dysfunctionality of America’s drug-pricing system. More than 10 million Americans rely on insulin to control their blood sugar, and the out-of-pocket cost of newer versions ranges from free (for some insured patients) to many hundreds of dollars a month (for insured and uninsured alike). (Lisa Jarvis, 3/10)

When I attended conversion therapy in 2004, the cost was $1,500 for a two-week session. My parents saved up for the so-called counseling, having heard through a network of Baptist preachers that, in many cases, clients required months, sometimes years, of "treatment." By the time I realized conversion therapy didn't work, it had not only taken our money but also caused our family deep emotional and psychological harm. (Garrard Conley, 3/10)

As people around the world come to acknowledge that gender is something defined along a spectrum rather than a binary concept, the necessity of a “gender dysphoria” diagnosis needs to be revisited. The fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), which is used by mental health practitioners around the world, defines gender dysphoria as psychological distress that results from an incongruence between the gender an individual was assigned at birth and one’s gender identity. As an advocate, provider, and CEO at a gender-affirming health care center, I have a problem with that term, as do a growing number of people in the transgender and gender-diverse communities, especially those who have early access to affirming support structures and care. (Dallas Ducar, 3/11)

Five days before my mother died of septic shock, a nurse tried to alert me that something might be wrong. I wish I had listened. After surgery for colon cancer, my mother spent two weeks in the hospital. The medical team began discharge planning. One afternoon, what we thought of as her “going home” presents — a walker and a toilet adapter — arrived at her bedside. But the next morning, my mother was tired and out of sorts. She sat in a chair and listlessly pushed a bit of egg around the plate, then leaned back and closed her eyes. (Ann MacDonald, 3/11)

The COVID-19 pandemic laid bare many of the inequities that already existed in our state. People of color were more likely to die from the virus, and more likely to face financial hardships. As our state moves toward recovering from the pandemic, we must embrace policies that will assure everyone has the opportunity to be as healthy as possible. This includes being able to take the time to recover from an illness or care for a sick loved one without facing severe financial consequences. By many measures, Connecticut is one of the nation’s healthiest and wealthiest states. Yet a closer look at health data reveals major disparities in health by race and ethnicity. (Tiffany Donelson, 3/11)