A House Judiciary subcommittee will hold a hearing Thursday on legislation to ban late-term abortions in the District of Columbia. The measure's sponsor, Rep. Trent Franks (R-Ariz.), has declared his intent to revise the bill to apply nationwide in light of the recent murder conviction of abortion provider Kermit Gosnell. Gosnell was recently convicted of killing three infants born alive after failed abortions. 

Franks's plan to extend his bill's reach comes as many conservative lawmakers use Gosnell's trial to indict late-term abortions, or procedures performed after 20 weeks of pregnancy. Abortion-rights opponents claim fetuses can feel pain at this stage, a premise that is disputed. Abortion-rights supporters point to recent court decisions knocking down 20-week bans because they prohibit abortions before fetal viability, which occurs at about 24 weeks.

Franks said Wednesday that his bill will have a "good chance" of coming to the House floor, but leaders could advance it under suspension of the rules, which requires a two-thirds majority for passage. Franks's D.C.-only measure failed to pass the House under suspension last year. Abortion-rights groups claimed the vote as a victory. 

TBI bill: Sens. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) and Tom Udall (D-N.M.) introduced legislation Wednesday intended to help prevent concussions in youth sports that can result in traumatic brain injuries (TBI). The bill would permit federal regulators to make safety recommendations and new rules for sports equipment manufacturers. It would also empower the Federal Trade Commission to crack down down on false claims in the marketing of sports protective gear.

"We need to make sure that protective sports equipment is sold based on the latest science, not false or deceptive claims," Rockefeller said in a statement. "Parents and coaches must be able to have confidence in the sports safety equipment they buy for their children and the protection it claims to offer." 

Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius urged college graduates Wednesday to remember the insurance benefits available to them through ObamaCare.

In a blog post on Healthcare.gov, Sebelius cited several popular provisions of the Affordable Care Act, including its requirement that family plans cover children until age 26.

"Because of the Affordable Care Act, you'll be able to begin this next chapter of your life with the peace of mind and security health insurance provides," Sebelius wrote. 

Substantial numbers of doctors and hospitals are now using electronic health records (EHRs) to provide better coordinated care, federal health officials reported Wednesday.

The Health and Human Services (HHS) Department said that EHR use by doctors rose from 17 percent to more than 50 percent between 2008 and this year.

The rise was even more dramatic among hospitals, from 9 percent up to more than 80 percent using EHRs. 

Employers have been cutting back employees' hours and access to health insurance since before President Obama's healthcare law passed, according to new research released Wednesday.

The findings are potentially significant as the healthcare law is about to take full effect. The law's critics say employers will cut workers' hours to avoid offering healthcare benefits.

But the trend toward part-time work predates the Affordable Care Act, according to the Employee Benefits Research Institute (EBRI).

Film and television stars hit Republicans on Wednesday for their opposition to abortion rights and free access to birth control.

Stanley Tucci, Morena Baccarin, Mehcad Brooks and others appeared in a Web video where they slammed conservative positions on women's health as retrograde.

House GOP panel OKs budget cuts far deeper than those approved in March

Market, insurers will keep premiums low, analysts say

Cancer Society hits 100 as U.S. cancer rate falls

Efforts to boost enrollment and raise awareness of President Obama's healthcare law are the next target for House Republicans.

Republican Sen. John Thune (S.D.) is demanding that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) refrain from implementing ObamaCare while investigators probe the agency's targeting of conservative groups.

Thune, who leads the Senate Republican Conference, wrote to the Obama administration Tuesday connecting the scandal to Sarah Hall Ingram, an IRS official who once had oversight of tax-exempt groups.

Hall Ingram is now in charge of the IRS's functions under ObamaCare, which include enforcing the law's individual mandate. Thune said the IRS must stop working on any regulations drafted under Hall Ingram's leadership while her role in the Tea Party scandal becomes clear. 

White House press secretary Jay Carney on Tuesday unfavorably compared questions about donations solicited by Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to Republicans questioning the president's birth certificate.

At a tense briefing where Carney took tough questions on a series of issues that could damage the White House politically, the press secretary aligned himself with White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer, who over the weekend accused Republicans of engaging in “partisan fishing expeditions.”

“You know, we could go down the list of questions — we could say, what about the president's birth certificate?" Carney responded. “Was that legitimate?”