WEALTH

Newsletter of the WIN Womens Health Policy Network

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March 2012 Volume 4 Issue 3

Network Announcements Women Win with the Affordable Care Act!

This Womens History Month, and with the 2nd anniversary of the ACA on March 23rd, let us celebrate a few of the many ways the ACA is improving womens access to health care: Prevention & Wellness: Beginning 2014, co-payments are no longer required for well women visits, contraception, and maternity care in the individual market. In addition, Essential Health Benefits (EHB) must be offered to all enrollees in the Exchanges as well as non-grandfathered small group and individual plans. EHB includes 10 categories of services including substance abuse, mental health services, and prescription drugs. It is estimated that the ACA will provide 20.4 million women with private insurance access to free preventive care. Affordability: Also beginning 2014, women cannot be charged higher premiums than men for the same health insurance policy. Many uninsured adults will benefit from the expansion of Medicaid eligibility up to 133% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL). Medicaid ineligible low-income individuals from 133% up to 400% of FPL without access to affordable employersponsored insurance will be provided tax credits to offset the cost of obtaining insurance in the Exchanges. Guaranteed Coverage: No longer can consumers be denied coverage due to pre-existing conditions, or denied a policy renewal as a result of health status. Also, as of the fall of 2010, young adults up to age 26 are eligible to stay on their parents private insurance plan. Despite the controversy surrounding the ACA, polls find that those who oppose the law as a whole generally support its individual provisions - once they understand them. The best way to continue to increase public support for the ACA is to champion its benefits to your friends, families, and communities. Share How the ACA Has Benefited You: Contribute to the National Womens Law Center ACA story blog, finish this sentence: Thanks to the health care law From March 19-23, the MD Womens Coalition for Health Care Reform will highlight a story of a woman who has benefited from the ACA, share your story HERE. Obama For America is collecting stories from those who have benefited from the ACA Share How the ACA Benefits Others: On Tuesday, March 20th, the HERvotes Coalition is hosting an ACA blog-carnival. Email political@winonline.org to learn how to contribute a blog post on how the ACA benefits women. Raising Womens Voices has a top ten list of benefits women receive under the ACA, with detailed information on timing Counter the Negativity - Celebrate the ACA: The National Womens Law Center has a list of ways organizations and individuals can celebrate Community Catalyst provides a plethora of information on how to take action in support of the ACA Be sure to join WINs Campaign Network, Capitol Hill Network, Government Relations Network, Political Team, Women's Health Policy Network and Women in the Law Network on March 22nd to say Happy Birthday ACA! Thursday, March 22nd, 6-8 pm: Join the Womens Health Policy Network (& five other WIN Networks) for happy hour at Lounge 201 to celebrate the 2nd anniversary of the ACA! There will be food, drink, and games! RSVP HERE! Sunday, April 15th, 2 pm: Join the Women's Health Policy & Health, Wellness & Recreation Networks for our April Healthy Living Potluck. In honor of National Minority Health Month, the discussion will focus on racial/ethnic health disparities. We will be joined by the cofounders of Divas MPH. RSVP now, space is limited! Related WIN Event: Wednesday, March 21, 6:30 pm: Join the Government Relations and Faith & Spirituality Networks for From the Pew to the Hill, a discussion with some of Washington's leading faith advocates. RSVP HERE!

Upcoming Health Policy Events

March 20 - 21: Marketing Disease Prevention and Awareness Conference, Communicating Childhood Obesity Prevention and Policy. Silver Spring, MD. Learn more. March 21-22: American University Washington College of Law Inaugural Conference on Global Health, Gender and Human Rights. Washington, D.C. Learn more. March 23, 2 3:30 pm: Health Equity and Accountability Act Community Working Group, Webinar on Health Equity Provisions in the Affordable Care Act. Learn more. March 26-28: CDC Web Conference, National Immunization Conference Online (NICO). Learn more. April 10-11: Association for Prevention Teaching and Research, 2012 National Health Promotion Summit. Washington, D.C. Learn more. April 12, 2:30-4pm: National Academy for State Health Policy Webinar, Building an Exchange from the Ground Up: A Conversation with State Health Insurance Exchange Leaders. Learn more.

New Health Policy Resources

We had so much content this month, we had to create an external list for our health policy resources! See HERE for new health policy reports, fact sheets, and issue briefs!

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Meet a WINner in Womens Health!

Shirley Kailas Program Assistant, Long-Acting Reversible Contraception American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists

en's access to the full range of contraceptive methods. What is the most challenging aspect of your job? Most rewarding? Most challenging: navigating internal and external barriers that prevent you from doing the work that matters (i.e. dealing with politics). Most rewarding: doing the work that matters! How do you think your academic background helped you to get where you are?

some would say, "fake it till you make it"). What are your long-term professional interests? Figuring this out is definitely an ever-evolving process for me, but in the long-term I see myself going to graduate school and building up experience so hopefully I can take on a leadership role within the movement in the future . What advice would you give to other entrylevel women working in womens health policy? I feel a bit silly dolling out advice considering I'm a newbie but I have learned a few very useful things in the past two years. Don't get TOO caught up in the day-to-day reproductive health battles and think about the big picture. This is something that I have a really hard time with when things comes out that are ridiculous and maddening. Thankfully I have a really great boss who reminds me not to go off the deep end every time the GOP tries to take away another civil right. Don't let Dems automatically off the hook because they are the only alternative to Republicans. Hold both Republicans and Democrats responsible for their actions. Be strategic with internships. If you want to work in the reproductive health field identify a few organizations that you see yourself working for and try to get an internship at one of them. You stand a much better chance of getting a job if something opens up!

My academic studies have everything to do You had a variety of experiences out- with where I am. Studying gender, sociology, side of public health, what led you to and anthropology allowed me understand the roots of the debates around women's rights and join ACOG? After a bit of exploring after college on women's health, and the deep-seated tensions different women's rights issues, I found they reflect. It was through my studies that I really developed a passion for bringing these myself coming back to my particular injustices to light and making sure that women passion, women's health. To me, this decision had a bit of an urgency about it have access to the things that allow us to be autonomous individuals in our society. considering the politicization around women's health had reached a sort of fever pitch. When I saw an opening for a job promoting contraception at ACOG, I jumped on it! Are there other skills that you wish you had learned before starting your job?

Honestly, no! Most of the young women professionals I know are really amazing women What does your job entail? with a broad set of skills who can really excel at any task put in front of them. I think being I'm in the advocacy division of ACOG happy and successful at any given job is more which is comprised of direct lobabout your personality and what kind of enviby/government relations work and "special issues" advocacy. I work in one ronment you will thrive in rather than any of the "special issues" programs focused specific skill set. There are only so many things you can learn before you just have to hit on promoting use of long-acting rethe ground running, so try to find the right versible contraception, reducing unintended pregnancy, and increasing wom- environment and learn along the way (or as

Healthy WINers
March is:
National Nutrition Month: National Nutrition Month is a nutrition education and information campaign designed to focus attention on the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits. Learn more at www.eatright.org. National Endometriosis Awareness Month: Endometriosis is a painful reproductive and immunological disease in which tissue similar to the uterine lining migrates outside the womb and implants in other areas of the body. The disorder affects nearly 176 million women and girls globally. Visit the Endometriosis Research Center to learn more. March 20th is National Native American HIV/AIDS Awareness Day: In 2009, Native Hawaiians/OPIs and American Indians/Alaska Natives had the 3rd & 4th highest rate of new HIV infections. Of all individuals diagnosed with HIV, AI/ANs had the shortest survival time. NNHAAD is a nationwide effort to promote HIV testing in Native communities. NNHAAD encourages Native people to: Get educated about HIV/AIDS and its impact in their community Work together to encourage testing options and HIV counseling in Native communities Help decrease the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS

Recent Womens Health Action on the Hill

February 14: Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved the International Protecting Girls by Preventing Child Marriage Act of 2011 (S. 414) February 16: House Judiciary Committee approved the Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act (H.R. 3541) and the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security held a hearing on the Office on Violence Against Women at the Department of Justice February 28: House Judiciary Committee held a hearing, Executive Overreach: The HHS Mandate Versus Religious Liberty March 6: House Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee held hearings on the FY 2013 budget for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) March 8: House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution held a hearing on the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act (H.R. 2299) Source: Womens Policy Inc.
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