Some of you may think of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) as being from a bygone age. But in fact, potential realization of the ERA is very much alive. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Sen. Mark Kirk (R-IL) plan to introduce a resolution on Thursday, May 9 that would eliminate the 1982 deadline originally established to ratify the Act. At present, the ERA is just three states short of being ratified. Should the deadline be... 

On April 17, 2013 NASW co-hosted a Congressional briefing with the National Council on Disabilities (NCD), American Psychological Association (APA), and Child Welfare League of America (CWLA) titled, Rocking the Cradle: Protecting the Rights of Parents with Disabilities and Their Children. The briefing focused on the barriers persons with disabilities experience when they exercise their fundamental right to create and... 

In April, NASW sent a letter to the Boy Scouts of America to end  their decades long policy of excluding openly gay scouts and leaders in their organization. On April 19, BSA announced publicly that the proposal to be considered by the Boy Scouts National Council this May recommends removing the ban on gay scouts, but upholding restrictions against openly gay adult scout leaders. Social worker practice, guided by the... 

Today, April 9, is Equal Pay Day. While some steps have been taken to diminish wage discrimination, such as the Lilly Ledbetter Act of 2009, women still only earn less than 80 cents on the dollar compared to men. The White House has long been aware of the significance of this day. President Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act in 1963, and President Obama mentioned the issue as recently as his inauguration speech. Granted,... 

NASW applauds President Obama for appointing Julia Pierson as Director of the United States Secret Service (USSS). This is a milestone for women and the USSS as Ms. Person is the first woman in the agency’s nearly 150 year history to hold the top leadership position. In January, NASW expressed concern with the change in direction the President was taking on appointing women, of all ethnicities, to Cabinet positions... 

Saturday, March 23 is a day worth recognizing.  It’s the 3rd anniversary of the signing of the Affordable Care Act. Since 2010, the Affordable Care Act has provided millions of Americans with greater consumer protections, with expanded coverage, and with more value for their health care dollars. For example: Young adults under the age of 26 can now stay on their parents’ health insurance plans. Group and individual... 

We are asking for your help to make compliance with the federal parity law a reality. Although the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA) was enacted over four years ago, the final federal rule implementing the law has not been issued.  Although it has promised a final MHPAEA rule by the end of the year, the Obama Administration has not clarified if the necessary protections will be in the final... 

On February 12, the U.S. Senate passed the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) by a comfortable 78-22 margin.  The bill included comprehensive protections for Native American women, women in same-sex marriages, and illegal immigrants, features not included in the 2012 House version of the bill. Now, we are urging the House of Representatives to pass the same version of VAWA that the Senate passed earlier this month. ... 

The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) applauds the decision of the Department of Defense to extend certain benefits to same-sex couples.  These benefits will include hospital visitation rights, life insurance survivor benefits, and the issue of a military dependent ID card.  The military ID card allows unescorted access on base, allows use of military family resources (such as the commissary and post-exchange),... 

On January 29, 2013 President Obama gave his “The Time is Now” speech which ushered in his administration’s Comprehensive Immigration Reform legislative initiative. A day earlier, a bipartisan group of four Republican and Four Democrats (the “gang of eight”) also announced that they will introduce comprehensive immigration legislation. Because the president received 70 percent of the Hispanic...