Posts Tagged ‘ healthcare reform ’

Another Wild Weekend

March 22, 2010
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Another Wild Weekend

We spent all day yesterday glued to our Blackberry and to C-SPAN. The House finally voted in favor of healthcare reform sometime around 11 p.m. Sunday – but not before some very ugly moments elapsed and some serious negotiation –using women’s health as the bargaining chip – took place. On Saturday, protestors in Washington yelled hateful racial and homophobic slurs at several Congressmen, and in cyberspace plenty of hateful posts could be viewed in Twitter streams. Then late Sunday night, someone on the House floor yelled “baby killer” at Rep. Bart Stupak. Stupak had been threatening to derail healthcare reform unless the final bill included his amendment containing some very restrictive abortion language. But the bill before the House contained the Nelson amendment, which also restricted access to abortion coverage. Even though pro-choice advocates said the Nelson amendment was a major blow to women’s reproductive rights, Stupak wouldn’t yield. After whisperings about closed door negotiations between Stupak and Pelosi, and Pelosi and pro-choice Democrats, a deal was struck. President Obama agreed to sign an Executive Order effectively supporting the Hyde amendment, which is already in place and prohibits the use of federal funds for abortions, and Stupak agreed to support [...]

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A job opening and an induction

March 19, 2010
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A job opening and an induction

Wanted: A candidate for the Mass Ninth Congressional District. This individual will represent all of the people of the district and lead with courage and integrity. The candidate must value diversity and equality and must not allow their personal religious views to enter into politics. Must be able to vote for the people — not just to keep the seat. Disingenuous candidates need not apply. A strong track record of pro-woman actions and support is a plus. A small army of supporters is ready to assist you in this position. Applications will be reviewed immediately. And now, an induction: Hello Ladies has “deemed” that Representative Stephen Lynch D-MA “passes” the test for an Ignorant Male Legislator Award and we are inducting him into the group. Rep. Lynch probably could have joined after he voted yes on the Stupak amendment, but we gave him a pass. However, after hearing his “disingenuous” reasons for why he plans to vote no on healthcare reform, we are welcoming him to the club. Lynch told WBZ radio that the bill “stripped out all the significant reform.” We disagree. In the current system women pay significantly higher premiums and face other discriminatory practices based on pre-existing [...]

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The Right to Life

March 16, 2010
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The Right to Life

More than two women die every day in the United States from pregnancy related causes. Repeat. More than two women die every day in the United States from pregnancy related causes. The incidences of “near misses,” complications where a woman comes close to dying, have increased since 2005. The maternal death rate has almost doubled since 1987. And some officials believe the numbers are underreported as the U.S. has no federal requirements to report maternal deaths. These disturbing facts were recently highlighted in a report called “Deadly Delivery” published by Amnesty International. That’s right, Amnesty, the human rights organization. From the report, “According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately half of all maternal deaths in the USA are preventable. Preventable maternal mortality is not just a public health issue, it is a human rights issue.” The United States spends more on healthcare than any other country in the world. Yet women in this country face a greater risk of dying from pregnancy or childbirth than women in 40 other countries. Women of color face the highest risk. The risk of dying for a black woman is four times greater than for a white woman. The report [...]

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Five Ways to Celebrate International Woman’s Day

March 8, 2010
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Five Ways to Celebrate International Woman’s Day

Today is International Women’s Day (IWD). IWD was started in1911 to celebrate the economic, political and social achievements of women worldwide. IWD is an official holiday in China, Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.  The theme of this year’s IWD is “Equal rights, equal opportunity: Progress for all.” Here are five things you can do to celebrate the day: 1. Support equal pay. Women still earn, on average, only .77 cents for every dollar a man earns. For women of color the gap is even greater. Despite the signing of the Lilly Ledbetter Act at the start of last year, we are not making progress in this area. The wage gap has widened. Let your senators know we need them to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act. 2. Support a woman candidate. Make a donation or volunteer your time and help get a competent women elected. Better yet, why don’t you run for office? Organizations like the Women’s Campaign Forum and Emily’s List support pro-women candidates with coaching and fundraising. Start by visiting She Should Run. Women bring much-needed diversity, unique perspectives, creativity, hard work and problem-solving to public office. 3. Support [...]

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Stupak inspires deadline extension for Ignorant Male Legislator Week

March 4, 2010
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Stupak inspires deadline extension for Ignorant Male Legislator Week

 I was sick last week* and therefore did not finish the posts for Ignorant Male Legislator Week. But just for you, Rep. Bart Stupak, I have extended the deadline. Mr. Stupak appeared on ABC’s “Good Morning America” today and vowed to block healthcare reform unless “that kind of language” in the Senate bill is removed. The language he is referring to is the language on abortion courtesy of Senator Ben Nelson (who also makes the Ignorant Male Legislator list). Cecile Richards, President of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, has said of the Nelson language, “If the current Senate language introduced by Senator Ben Nelson is maintained, it would result in the most significant restriction in access to abortion coverage in the nearly 35 years since the U.S. Congress first adopted the Hyde Amendment.” But “that language” isn’t good enough for Stupak. Nope, Stupak says he and 11 other Democrats are prepared to block healthcare reform unless his even more stringent language from the House bill is included in the final bill. “We’re prepared to take the responsibility,” he said. Stupak and Nelson are distorting the truth in order to advance their agenda – destroying a woman’s right to choose. Stupak says his bill merely [...]

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Healthcare Reform and Women’s Rights

March 3, 2010
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Healthcare Reform and Women’s Rights

While we’ve been away and busy so many interesting things have transpired. So today, a roundup. One of the things that had me occupied last week was my health – nothing serious just the standard end-of-winter cough, fever, chills - and I had to visit the doctor and take medicine. My appointment was the same day as President Obama’s healthcare summit, and as I watched the proceedings on C-SPAN I was grateful to be insured and to receive timely treatment when I need it. It turns out Erin Kotecki Vest, aka Queen of Spain, was grateful too. Her story is more dramatic than mine and a highly recommended read on the need for healthcare reform. Speaking of healthcare, there is a heartbreaking and blood-boiling story out of Nicaragua. A pregnant woman, with metastasized cancer, is not getting treatment. The reason? Chemotherapy or radiation might harm her 10 week fetus. Under Nicaragua’s draconian abortion laws, doctors are prohibited from doing anything to help her. Abortion, even when the mother’s health is in danger, is against the law in that country. This woman is the sole caregiver of her 10-year old daughter. While the government protects the rights of the unborn, who protects this 10-year [...]

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Blog for Choice

January 22, 2010
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Blog for Choice

Every year on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, NARALPro-Choice America asks bloggers to blog the answer to a question.  This year’s question is in honor of the late Dr. George Tiller who was shot and killed at church one Sunday morning last May. Dr. Tiller often wore a button that read, “Trust Women.” So today, we answer the question: What does “Trust Women” mean to you? Let me tell you about trusting women. I trust women because a woman gave birth to me, nursed me, cared for me and raised me. She made sure I was well fed, adequately clothed and got enough sleep each night. She got me to school on time and made sure my homework was done. She comforted me when I suffered rejection and then pushed me back out to try again. She made me feel safe when life got scary and she let me go when the time was right. I trust women, because the woman who raised me, trusted me when I moved 3,000 miles away and built my own life. I trust women because I have worked for women. Women who mortgaged their homes to sustain their business. Women who had the [...]

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Pay Attention to Mass Senate Race

January 13, 2010
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Pay Attention to Mass Senate Race

Ladies, it’s time to pay attention to the special election in Massachusetts to fill Ted Kennedy’s Senate seat, no matter where you live. When voters go to the polls next week, January 19, women everywhere stand to either gain or lose a lot. Democratic nominee and Attorney General  Martha Coakley is running against Republican nominee and State Senator Scott Brown.  There is a third candidate in the race, Independent Joe Kennedy (no relation to the late Senator), but he is not considered a contender. Until recently no one really thought Brown was a contender either. How could the Commonwealth let “The Kennedy Seat” go to a Republican? Plus, Massachusetts has not elected a Republican senator since 1972.* As a result, the race has been rather dull and garnered very little attention outside the Commonwealth. And then the Senate passed its version of the healthcare bill and suddenly, things got interesting. Conservative interest groups, fueled by a desire to elect Brown as the 41st vote against the bill, started pouring money and volunteers into the race. The American Future Fund, a group whose members are believed to be behind the Swift Boat ad and the Willie Horton ad that hurt John Kerry and [...]

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More Attention Needed on PreNatal Health

January 8, 2010
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More Attention Needed on PreNatal Health

Yesterday Zach Krajacic wrote in The Christian Science Monitor, “Imagine how many lives could be saved by passing a law that requires abortion providers to show mothers considering an abortion an ultrasound video of the procedure before they are allowed to perform the abortion.” His reasoning, “Upon seeing what happens during an abortion, many women might choose to have their baby rather than go through with the abortion.” His thinking is so flawed says the woman who walked out of childbirth class when they showed the videos. I was happy to learn some breathing techniques but there was no way I was going to watch a birth on film. If I had been forced to see what happens during childbirth, I might have chosen to keep the kids in there. By the way, I would skip a life-saving organ transplant too if you made me watch a video of the operation first. How would a video preview affect Krajacic’s feelings about his annual regular prostrate exam or colonoscopy? Krajacic infers that because so many pro-choice people also claim to be anti-abortion, then of course they would get on board with this brilliant way to reduce the number of abortions that [...]

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Not Under The Bus

December 11, 2009
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Not Under The Bus

  The Senate voted down the Stupak-like Nelson amendment, which would have severely restricted a woman’s right to an abortion and other related reproductive health procedures, during its healthcare debates this week. But women’s rights activists don’t think we are out of the woods yet. Both the Stupak-Pitts and the Nelson amendment were aggressive moves to take away women’s reproductive rights. Both amendments would have left women with fewer health benefits than they have now – despite the fact President Obama has promised no American will be worse off after a health bill passes. The fact that these two amendments were even introduced and carried so much weight, signals a renewed interest by some to restrict women’s rights, not expand them. Women have raised their voices during the national debate on healthcare to demand equal coverage for equal premiums – to tell Congress we are not a pre-existing condition. And we were dismayed to see how our health was ultimately used as a bargaining chip to pass healthcare reform.  In order to “to amplify the voices of women and organizations devoted to a health care reform that is fair to women,” the Women’s Media Center has launched “Not Under The [...]

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