Posts Tagged ‘ healthcare reform ’

Ignorant Legislator of the Week: A Three-Way Tie

February 17, 2012
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Ignorant Legislator of the Week: A Three-Way Tie

What a sad state of affairs. There is so much competition for the Ignorant Legislator of the Week Award, we had to call it a three-way tie. Source: google.com via Hello_Ladies on Pinterest   The first award goes to Virginia House Deputy Majority Leader Todd Gilbert. During debates for a bill that will require a woman seeking an abortion to undergo a vaginal ultrasound, Gilbert said about abortions, “the vast majority of these cases are matters of lifestyle convenience.” He went on to say, “It is right and proper for a woman to be fully informed about what she is doing.” For Gilbert, forcing a woman to undergo a medically unnecessary, invasive procedure is “right and proper” in order to protect her from making a grave mistake for convenience sake. Source: blunt.senate.gov via Hello_Ladies on Pinterest   Next, we have Senator Roy Blunt, who  wins the award for creating legislation that would  allow an employer to exclude any health service from the coverage they provide based on any religious beliefs or moral convictions. Blunt’s amendment is a response to the Obama administration mandate  that allows religious-affiliated institutions to opt out of coverage for contraceptives for employees but requires their insurers to offer [...]

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News From Around the Web

February 16, 2012
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News From Around the Web

No time to write this week and so much to discuss. So here’s a round up of news from around the web affecting women. Click the links to learn more. Let’s start with Virginia, where this week the legislation passed two disturbing bills. The first gives a fertilized egg rights. The second forces a woman seeking an abortion to undergo a vaginal ultrasound -an invasive probe that is medically unnecessary. The Washington Post reports on Virginia House Deputy Majority Leader Todd Gilbert who believes “the vast majority” of abortions are just “matters of lifestyle convenience.’’ The Frisky’s Jessica Wakeman writes of the bills, “I’m frightened, quite frightened.” We should all be worried. The war on women wages on in Washington as politicians continue to argue about a woman’s access to contraception  – which, we just want to point out, has nothing to do with creating jobs. In fact, if the GOP and the Catholic Bishops had their way, we could be looking at layoffs at birth control manufacturers such as Merck Pharmaceuticals and Bayer Healthcare. Nor, does it have anything to do with religion despite how some try to spin it. This is about controlling women and maintaining a status quo of [...]

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In Support of Reproductive Rights on Roe v. Wade Anniversary

January 22, 2012
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In Support of Reproductive Rights on Roe v. Wade Anniversary

For the 39th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court ruling which made abortion legal in the United States, we are participating in NARAL Pro-Choice America’s Blog for Choice Day by answering the question: What will you do to help elect pro-choice candidates in 2012? It’s an important question. According to NARAL, in 2011 26 states enacted anti-choice measures. And in the GOP presidential primary race, four anti-choice candidates are vying for the nomination. In the good news category, on Friday the Obama administration announced it would uphold a ruling that will provide women access to birth control with no co-pays as part of the  Affordable Care Act. And today, President Obama issued a statement reaffirming his commitment to protecting a woman’s right to choose.  It read, “While this is a sensitive and often divisive issue- no matter what our views, we must stay united in our determination to prevent unintended pregnancies, support pregnant woman and mothers, reduce the need for abortion, encourage healthy relationships, and promote adoption.  And as we remember this historic anniversary, we must also continue our efforts to ensure that our daughters have the same rights, freedoms, and opportunities as our sons to fulfill their dreams.” And ultimately, [...]

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If I Were Santa

December 14, 2011
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If I Were Santa

If I were Santa, I’d be making my list and checking it twice. And here are the gifts I would give: For Our Daughters: The gift of self-esteem and positive role models The mass media perpetuates a message that women and girls’ value comes from beauty and sexuality – and it affects us. Sixty-five percent of women and girls have an eating disorder. Eighty percent of the op-ed pages are dominated by men. The number of women in senior management positions globally has gone from 24 to 20 percent from 2004 to 2009. For Corporate America: More women in leadership positions There is a large, and growing, body of research connecting women at the tops of organizations to a strong bottom line performance. However, women comprise 53 percent of new hires, but only 37 percent of managers, 26 percent of vice-presidents, and just 14 percent of executive committees.   For Working Mothers: Flexible work arrangements … and a day of rest The life of a working mother is challenging. Flexible work arrangements give parents the ability to work more flexibly and better manage the challenges of work and family. For Working Families: Passage of the Paycheck Fairness Act According to [...]

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Catholic Bishops Are in Washington, and My Uterus, Again

December 4, 2011
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Catholic Bishops Are in Washington, and My Uterus, Again

The all-male Catholic Bishops are weighing in on women’s reproductive rights again. This time they are upset about a requirement in the Affordable Care Act mandating employers offer free contraceptive coverage as part of health insurance policies beginning next August. While there is an exemption in the law for some religious employers, primarily churches that employ mostly people of the same faith, the bishops say it is too narrowly defined and “even the ministry of Jesus and the early Christian Church would not qualify.” They want to see the exemption broadened to include universities, hospitals and clinics associated with religious organizations. Doing so would take away a key aspect of healthcare reform from countless women. Said U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Service Kathleen Sebelius when the administration first announced the requirement last summer, “These historic guidelines are based on science and existing literature and will help ensure women get the preventive health benefits they need.” But now it appears the White House is reconsidering. Following a meeting between Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, and President Obama, The New York Times reported, “Several lawmakers said administration officials had left them with the impression [...]

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Pumping at Work: Breastfeeding Awareness Month

August 11, 2011
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Pumping at Work: Breastfeeding Awareness Month

Corporate lactation programs. Private pumping rooms. Informed, supportive HR specialists. If you read enough Best-Places-to Work-for-Mothers articles, you might think this is the reality for mothers returning to work post-baby. But for many women, pumping at work has its challenges. August is Breastfeeding Awareness Month, designed to remind us breast milk has many health benefits for both mother and baby. And there are benefits for businesses too. The World Alliance Breastfeeding Action (WABA) reports the benefits are significant, resulting in, “more satisfied, loyal employees and cost savings to the business” from a reduction in sick time for childrens’ illnesses and lower health insurance.  The organization recommends all businesses “create a maternity policy that supports women in their desire to breastfeed and create a dedicated space where women can express milk in privacy.” But working women often face challenges when they return to their jobs after maternity leave. Finding the time and a private place to pump can be difficult. Storing milk and cleaning breast pump equipment can be frowned upon in employee break rooms, and working out a pumping plan can be an awkward conversation to have with an unsupportive boss. Even when a company is supportive, it can be exhausting for [...]

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Washington Makes Women’s Health a Priority

August 3, 2011
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Washington Makes Women’s Health a Priority

More good news out of Washington (can you believe it?). The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) earlier this week announced new guidelines as part of the Affordable Care Act that require new health insurance plans to cover women’s preventive services including breastfeeding support, domestic violence screening, and contraception – without charging a co-payment or a deductible. HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in a statement, “These historic guidelines are based on science and existing literature and will help ensure women get the preventive health benefits they need.” In developing the guidelines, the HHS worked with the Institute of Medicine to do a review of women’s health needs and provide recommendations on preventive measures specifically for women. According to the HHS website, women will have access to the following services without cost-sharing starting in August of next year: well-woman visits; screening for gestational diabetes; human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA testing for women 30 years and older; sexually-transmitted infection counseling; human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) screening and counseling; FDA-approved contraception methods and contraceptive counseling; breastfeeding support, supplies, and counseling; and domestic violence screening and counseling. An amendment to the new regulation allows religious institutions that offer insurance to their employees a choice whether [...]

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News from Around the Web

May 5, 2011
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News from Around the Web

Here’s a quick roundup of news affecting women from around the world and the web. Sixteen Democrats joined House Republicans in passing H.R. 3 to make sure taxpayer money can’t be used or abortions even though taxpayer funds already couldn’t be used for abortions. And in the process, they in essence they banned tax subsidies for private insurance plans that include coverage for abortion services. If this bill passes in the Senate, and many expect it will not, small businesses would have to make sure the plans they offer don’t cover abortion or risk losing tax credits afforded them by last year’s healthcare reform. In more women-friendly political news, Florida’s Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz has been named  chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee. One year after the senseless death of lacrosse player Yeardley Love, ESPN has published a story about the lessons learned and how the University of Virginia, “has worked to learn from the tragedy while encouraging its population to be more vigilant against domestic violence.” And in Newsweek, Dan Mulhern from the Families and Work Institute has published his own lessons learned in a letter to his son. Mulhern tells him, “You need not fear strong women, or dismiss gentle men. And [...]

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Discuss Amongst Yourselves

April 20, 2011
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Sheryl Sandberg, Chief Operating Officer at Facebook, discusses why we have too few women leaders, at TED. It’s worth the watch. And for more on why we have too few women speakers at TED, check this out from C.V. Harquail and then join the “She Should Talk at TED” group on Facebook

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Two Ways to Mark the Anniversary of Healthcare Reform

March 24, 2011
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Two Ways to Mark the Anniversary of Healthcare Reform

One year ago this week President Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Vice President Biden was right. It was a big *$% deal. The sweeping reform, which will go into full effect in 2014 will help the currently uninsured, extend benefits through parents’ policies to struggling young adults, offer new tax credits to small businesses and assist senior citizens with costly prescription costs. The reform has particular significance for women who historically paid higher premiums than men and were penalized for their so-called pre-existing conditions like pregnancy, C-sections and yes, even, domestic violence. Pre-existing conditions can no longer be cause for not insuring someone. Under the reform, women can also access the preventative care that is so critical to their well-being including critical maternity care. The United States has a very high maternal mortality rate. In fact two women die due to pregnancy-related complications each day in the United States. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act covers folic acid supplements, breast feeding support programs and screening for pregnancy-related conditions including anemia, cervical cancer and hepatitis B. And critical to both pregnant and non-pregnant women, screenings for breast and osteoporosis are now more affordable and accessible. It’s [...]

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