Jill’s mother was living a full life with Parkinson’s disease for 20 years, until she recently developed much worse symptoms, including dementia. She began seeing a memory care specialist and was prescribed medication, but that seemed to make her dementia worse. She also started showing signs of serious gastrointestinal distress, …

By Mary Farrow Erie, Pa., Dec 20, 2019 / 03:45 pm (CNA).- When Dr. Gertrude Barber became the assistant superintendent of the Erie School District in Pennsylvania, the standard practice for educating children with disabilities and special needs was to institutionalize them. This did not sit well with Barber, who …

By Jonah McKeown Columbus, Ohio, Dec 17, 2019 / 06:01 pm (CNA).- An Ohio state representative told the Cincinnati Enquirer Dec. 17 that he did not consult with doctors before crafting a bill that would allow insurance providers to pay for procedures to “reimplant” embryos removed from ectopic pregnancies – …

Washington D.C., Dec 9, 2019 / 09:35 am (CNA).- Kentucky’s ultrasound requirement for abortions survived an appeal to the Supreme Court on Monday as the justices declined to take up a challenge to the law. Kentucky’s law, “The Ultrasound Informed Consent Act,” requires abortion doctors to present and describe an …

By Christine Rousselle Columbus, Ohio, Nov 7, 2019 / 02:00 pm (CNA).- Ohio lawmakers have passed two pieces of new pro-life legislation while court battles challenging earlier pro-life laws continue. On Wednesday, the Ohio Senate passed Senate Bill 155 by a vote of 22-10. The bill would require doctors to …

By the time Jaymin was 12, he had lived in more places with more people than one can easily count – and all of them were drug users. The police finally caught up with his mother and her boyfriend, who were using heroin and neglecting their children, so Jaymin and his …

Gloria was 4 when her father first started physically abusing her. As a young child she often hid in her closet, afraid she might die, feeling like she was a bad person. She learned not to fight back or cry or scream too much, knowing if she did, the beatings …

Sarah was pregnant with her fourth child at age 26. A single mom with no support from the father, she reluctantly scheduled an appointment for an abortion. She was given two pills. She took the first pill while in tears, and was advised to take the second one 24 hours …

As a student at St. Rita School for the Deaf was receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation at his local parish. The parish invited a St. Rita employee who knew minimal American Sign Language (ASL) to attend so they could interpret the basics of the moment of the Sacrament, but there …

The story below is Part II of two powerful personal interviews. On the other side of the courtroom, Bill Pelke stands with those who have lost loved ones to violent crime. Bill’s grandmother, Nana, was attacked by a group of teenage girls who skipped school one afternoon, looking for money …