EXPANDED HEALTH COVERAGE FOR WOMEN: Pamela Wood of the Sun reports that Gov. Larry Hogan is expected to sign into law today what advocates say will place the state at the forefront of efforts to require insurance plans to offer birth control at no out-of-pocket cost, expanding access to women and men who want to preventunwanted pregnancies. The law won’t go into effect until Jan. 1, 2018 and will apply only to insurance companies regulated by the state of Maryland.

• Karen Nelson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Maryland, told Daniel Leaderman of the Daily Record that, at a time when many states are restricting access to reproductive care, the legislationestablishes Maryland as a leader in providing those services.

MORE SECURE ID: Making a fake Maryland ID is about to get harder, Colin Campbell reports in the Sun. The state Motor Vehicle Administration, looking to guard against identity theft and counterfeiting, has announced a $3.5 million redesign of its driver’s license and identification cards, its first since 2003. The new cards, unveiled Monday, feature a range of security measures. “This card is the most secure driver’s license in the United States today,” state Transportation Secretary Pete Rahn said.

• Meredith Newman of the Annapolis Capital writes about the five things you need to know about the new ID.

• But nearly 5 million drivers and others who use identification cards issued by the state Motor Vehicle Administration will have to wait seven to 10 businesses days to have their new cards mailed to them from a high-tech and highly secure center, writes Bryan Sears for the Daily Record.

PART 2: TOP SECRET TECHNOLOGY: In Part 2 of the CNS series on battlefield technology that local police departments  are using to track cell phones, CourtneyMabeus discovers that finding out about the technology isn’t easy for reporters — nor for the attorneys trying to defend their clients.

READ THE ENTIRE STORY HERE:

http://marylandreporter.com/2016/05/10/state-roundup-may-10-2016/