March is Women’s History Month and NASW’S longstanding advocacy as well as success on women’s issues prompted an invitation from the Women in Politics Institute to attend a panel discussion and reception acknowledging the contributions of women in government, including those within the Obama Administration.  The event will occur on March 23, 2010 at the Katzen Arts Center on the campus of American University located in Washington, D.C.  Invited guests include the following luminaries: The Honorable Melanne Verveer, Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues, U.S. Department of State, Tina Tchen, Director, White House Office of Public Engagement and Anita McBride, Former Chief of Staff to First Lady Laura Bush.

In October, Representative Barbara Lee (CA-9) introduced H.R. 3699, a bill to prohibit any funds being expended to increase the number of members of the United States armed forces serving in Afghanistan. The bill currently has 27 cosponsors and has been referred to the House Committee on Armed Forces. Rep. Lee, a social worker, was the only opponent to George W. Bush’s War Resolution in 2002 by introducing House Concurrent Resolution 473 into the 107th Congress, which urged the United States to re-engage the diplomatic process and stressed the government’s commitment to the United Nations’ inspections process. NASW applauds the efforts of Representative Lee to restore peace.

Becky Myers, LSW, ACSW
Director, External Relations
Dec 3, 2009

Today, staff and members of NASW attended the National Lobby Day and Rally against the Stupak Amendment. NASW was a sponsor and worked to plan and implement the event. The U.S. House of Representatives passed an amendment to the health care reform legislation sponsored by Bart Stupak (MI-1) and Joe Pitts (PA-16). This “Stupak” amendment would restrict access to abortion procedures for consumers who receive subsidies to buy insurance in a reconfigured health care system. Pro-choice organizations are very concerned the new language threatens the availability of private insurance coverage for comprehensive reproductive health care services. Today these groups joined forces to lobby their members of Congress and rally against this amendment being included in the Senate healthcare reform package and conference legislation.

The rally was led by Cecile Richards, President of Planned Parenthood, and sponsored by a number of women’s, religious, professional, campus, and related groups in support of reproductive choice. The support from members of Congress was overwhelming with many in attendance including social worker Susan Davis, Senator Barbara Boxer, Senator Patty Murray, Rep. Jerry Nadler, Rep. Nita Lowey, Rep. Rosa DeLauro, Rep. Dianna DeGette, Rep. Lynn Woolsey, and Rep. Donna Edwards. Additional speakers included Ellie Smeal from the Feminist Majority, Willie Parker, the Medical Director with Planned Parenthood of Metro DC, and Rev. Carlton Veazey

The crowd was quite large and included all ages, races, and genders. People came from all over the United States and from 38 different college campuses. The overall message was that we are all in support of healthcare reform and universal access for everyone, but not on the backs of women. Everyone expressed that healthcare reform efforts should be targeted to increase access, not deny women the right to choose, and absolutely not to reverse current law.

Stand up for reproductive choice today by contacting your Representative and Senators today!

Because Congress will be in recess for the Thanksgiving holiday, there will be no Health Care Roundup on Tuesday, December 1. The next publication will be on Tuesday, December 8.

Rally on Reproductive Choice in Health Care Reform

The U.S. House of Representatives passed an amendment to the health care reform legislation sponsored by Bart Stupak (MI-1) and Joe Pitts (PA-16). This amendment would restrict access to abortion procedures for consumers who receive subsidies to buy insurance in a reconfigured health care system. Pro-choice organizations are very concerned the new language threatens the availability of private insurance coverage for comprehensive reproductive health care services.

NASW is co-sponsoring a rally and lobby day on Wednesday, December 2. The day starts at 9am with a lobby training followed by a briefing from 9:30 - 10:30am. Lobby visits from 10:30-11:30.  There will be an event from 12:00-2:00 and more lobby visits from 2:00-4:30.  Events will take place in the Dirksen Auditorium G-50. A wrap up will take place at 4:30 in Rayburn Banquet Room B369. If you would like to participate in the lobby day, please contact Dina Kastner at advocacy@naswdc.org (the mailbox is now accepting messages) so she can set up appointments for you.

Senate Opens Floor Debate on Health Reform

On Saturday, November 21 the U.S. Senate agreed to hold debate on health reform legislation known as the “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act,” (H.R. 3590). The bill is expected to be on the floor for several weeks after Thanksgiving and will require significant changes to clear the filibuster hurdle of 60 votes to secure passage. NASW plans to strongly support passage, but will also support changes in the bill including those that improve coverage and protect against any weakening amendments of women’s rights to reproductive choices. NASW expects to be very actively involved in this debate; members wishing to keep up to date on our activities should visit our health reform webpage here.

Financial Impact of Health Reform

There is a great deal of analysis available on health reform legislation, but information from non-partisan congressional sources, such as the Congressional Budget Office, is frequently most pertinent to legislative decision making. Readers interested in learning more about the impact of health care reform legislation on federal spending may wish to view congressional analyses of the legislation.  These two inks summarize the budgetary impact of the House bill, HR. 3962: Health Care by the Numbers and Controlling Health Care Costs.

The Senate bill the “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act,” (H.R. 3590) is still new so nonpartisan analyses of its budgetary impact are still becoming available. One summary is linked here and more information appears here. A brief comparison of the Senate and House versions of health reform legislation is available by this link to a Washington Post interactive site.

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius on Monday announced the release of Health Insurance Reform: The Case for Change, a series of state-by-state reports highlighting the benefits of health insurance reform. The reports are available now here.

Medicare Fee Fix Passes House Floor Moves to Senate

The House passed legislation H.R. 3961 on November 19, which would prevent a scheduled 21 percent cut in Medicare doctors’ payment rates, although its fate remains uncertain. Without congressional action, payment rates for Medicare physician and clinical social worker services will drop by 21 percent on January 1, 2010. The prospect of steep payment cuts has raised fears that care to beneficiaries could be disrupted. The fate of corrective legislation that would permanently repeal the flawed sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula that determines future payment rates in Medicare and TRICARE remains uncertain. The SGR formula is frequently inappropriately described as the Medicare “physician fee” formula, but it actually sets the overall rate of increase or decrease for all Medicare Part B independent practitioners, including clinical social workers. NASW supports corrective legislation that would halt scheduled cuts in Medicare payments to clinical social workers and other health professionals and has urged Congress to adopt a plan to recalibrate how those payments are set each year. See NASW’s letter to Congress here.

Correcting the problem before the rate cuts go into effect on Jan. 1, will be politically extremely difficult. The Senate’s huge health care reform bill (H.R. 3590) includes short-term Medicare rate relief, but this provision is highly controversial and may change during floor consideration. Currently, the Senate plans to return to its physician payment bill once they finish work on health care reform, likely meaning it won’t be considered until sometime after the cuts go into effect on Jan. 1. Congress in the past has occasionally failed to enact the physician payment legislation in time, but has simply later passed retroactive legislation that restores the payment rates. Current law requires even further reductions in Medicare physician fees, a loss which will total to a 40 percent cut by 2016. If the Senate agrees to separate physician payment legislation, it may simply approve the House passed bill, but for now, a politically acceptable solution has not been identified.

Health Technology Loan Measure Passed by House

On November 18, the House passed, by voice vote, a bill (HR 3014) creating a new program to be administered by the Small Business Administration that would guarantee small business loans to health professionals such as clinical social workers and physicians to obtain health information technology for use in small or independent health practices. Eligible health information technology includes computer hardware, software, and related technology that supports the meaningful electronic health record use requirements of Medicare and purchased by an eligible professional to aid in the provision of health care, including electronic medical records. Information technology whose sole use is financial management, maintenance of inventory of basic supplies, or appointment scheduling would not qualify for the loan program. The legislation has been referred to the Senate where action is uncertain at this time.

GINA Employment Provisions Take Effect

On November 21, the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) took effect for all employers with 15 or more employees and it took effect for individual health insurance plans last May.

GINA was passed by Congress last year and prohibits the use by employers of genetic or family medical history in making hiring, firing, promotion or job placement decisions.  Employers cannot require employees to undergo a genetic screening or ask employees for such medical information.

In related news, NASW joined various groups on a letter to the Department of Labor, Department of Health and Human Services and the Internal Revenue Service stating our opposition to any delay or weakening of the GINA regulations.  The letter states, “any delay in implementation would continue to allow employers to inquire about employees’ private genetic information or their families’ medical history, while penalizing employees who choose to keep that information private; any such exemption would create a loophole to significantly weaken the protections afforded to employees and the American people under GINA”.

Elizabeth J. Clark, PhD, ACSW, MPH
Executive Director

NASW has been working in support of universal health care for all individuals for a very long time and most recently in support of health care reform legislation. We’ve advocated for a public option and recently supported H.R. 3200, America’s Affordable Health Choices Act. However, we are opposed to the Stupak-Pitts Amendment which would restrict access to abortion procedures for consumers who receive subsidies to buy insurance in a reconfigured health care system. Pro-choice organizations are very concerned that the new language threatens the availability of private insurance coverage for comprehensive reproductive health care services. We joined many of these organizations on Capitol Hill Wednesday morning to organize against this measure.

Cecile Richards, President of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, organized and led the meeting along with groups including the Feminist Majority, National Organization for Women, Naral Pro Choice America, Catholics for Choice, and the Young Women’s Christian Association along with numerous state level organizations and offices. The group discussed what the amendment does and why it is a dangerous precedent to set for women’s health rights.

Ms. Richards introduced Senator Stabenow, who was the featured speaker and one of the social workers in Congress. She referred to a video for which Senator Stabenow has become infamous. In the video Senator Kyl from Arizona discourages healthcare coverage for maternity care saying, “I don’t need maternity care.” Upon which Senator Stabenow retorts, “I bet your mother did.” She has been an outspoken advocate for women’s rights for a long time and has fought in the Senate Finance Committee to ensure equality and justice for everyone under a health care reform proposal.

Senator Stabenow further discussed the magnitude of this amendment and stated that health care reform legislation should expand health care, not decrease what is already available. She said, “We aren’t going to roll back the clock to limit options and services. We want coverage we need when we need it.” This amendment is designed to stop health care reform from being signed into law. Additionally, women have more to gain from health care reform as they pay more for insurance and receive less coverage. Senator Stabenow ended by saying, “Hang in there with us. I don’t pretend that it will be easy. I want you to go get em!”

The overall message of the meeting was that we want health care reform but not on the backs of women across the country. NASW will be participating in a lobby day on December 2 to oppose the Stupak-Pitts amendment.

Elizabeth J. Clark, PhD, ACSW, MPH
Executive Director

NASW was a proud co-sponsor of the celebration of Women Appointees of the Obama Administration. Sponsored by the Coalition for Women’s Appointments (of which NASW is a member), the event, held on September 29, was appropriately held at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, DC.

Irene Natividad, Chair of the Coalition for Women’s Appointments and President of the Global Summit of Women welcomed the large group and spoke of the importance of recognizing women’s talents in government. Over 335 appointees were present. Nancy Hogan, Director of the White House Office of Presidential Personnel remarked that we will need a bigger room next year as over a thousand women have been appointed so far with 143 being Senate approved. She also pointed out that although we’ve made great strides, women are still underrepresented. She further challenged us to find five qualified women to sign on to White House Presidential Appointments Application website.

Tina Tchen, Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement and Executive Director of the Council for Women and Girls also spoke about the issues concerning women and girls and the responsibility of all of federal government to address these challenges. We have worked consistently with Ms. Tchen and she looks forward to continuing her work with the women’s groups.

The Honorable Kathleen Sebelius, the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) offered remarks as well. The Coalition for Women’s Appointments identified Secy. Sebelius as their first choice for Secretary of HHS. She spoke of the importance of health care reform, noting that it is the number one issue for the Administration and likened it to the struggle of the suffragettes who worked for many years for passage of the 19th Amendment. She stated that, “reform will change the world for women.”

Secy. Sebelius also introduced social worker Carmen Nazario, who was recently appointed as Assistant Secretary for Children and Families. Until her recent nomination, Carmen Nazario was an Assistant Professor at the Inter American University of Puerto Rico, where she taught social policy and coordinated the Social Work Practicum at the School of Social Work. Nazario has vast experience in public service with a focus on improving services to children and families within the United States and around the world, dating back to 1968.

NASW Executive Director, Elizabeth J Clark, PhD, ACSW, MPH

I attended an event at the White House this morning, September 18, 2009, with First Lady Michelle Obama, Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius, and Executive Director of the White House Council on Women and Girls Tina Tchen. The focus of this meeting was to discuss the impact of health care reform on women and families. Many important women’s organizations were represented as well as health care reform advocates. The First Lady said that she invited the people who have been “fighting for decades for equality for women.”

I was happy to be able to speak with Dr. Dorothy Height, President Emerita of the National Council of Negro Women and the civil rights legend and social worker we are proud to name the Social Work Reinvestment Act after. The First Lady began her remarks by thanking Dr. Height for attending the meeting and telling her that she is her inspiration.

Several women discussed their own challenges with the healthcare system including burdensome debt from skyrocketing costs, untreated illnesses, and worries for their children and families. The First Lady discussed how this issue disproportionately affects women, as we are not only responsible for most of the family care giving, but also are more likely to work part-time or in small businesses, making insurance unaffordable and inaccessible for many women. Mrs. Obama stated that “women are being crushed by healthcare costs.”

Mrs. Obama discussed the difficult experiences of “sandwich generation” women. NASW has understood the burden of the sandwich generation for quite some time as many women (and many social workers) are tasked with caring for their children and their elderly relatives. Mrs. Obama discussed the implications of this saying, “it’s not a family issue or an economic issue. It’s a healthcare issue.”

With personal anecdotes and stories about her own family, Mrs. Obama communicated an urgency that healthcare reform cannot wait. If women do not receive proper care and treatment, then their families and children will suffer as a result. This situation is untenable for our nation, and in particular for the social work profession as we seek to contribute to healthy individuals, families, and communities. The First Lady ended her remarks with a call to action saying, “Channel our passion into action. Mobilize like we’ve never mobilized before. Educate our members on not just what’s at stake, but what it all means. Make our voices heard right here in DC.” As supporters of universal care for all, we will do just that.

Watch the video archive of the August 27th Webcast on what pregnant women and new mothers can do to prepare for the H1N1 flu. Email questions were answered by the expert panel during the broadcast.

What Pregnant Women Should Know About H1N1 (swine) Flu

On Wednesday, August 12, NASW was invited to attend a meeting in the Executive Office Building of the White House regarding Women for Health Insurance Reform – Stability and Security for All Americans.   The goal of the meeting was to emphasize how important women are in discussing the need for health care reform.  The speakers for the meeting were Valerie Jarrett, Senior Adviser to the President; Tina Tchen, Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement; David Simas, White House Communications Office, Office of Health  Reform; Buffy Wicks, Deputy Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement; Kavita Patel, White House Office of Public Engagement; and Neera Tanden, Senior Advisor, HHS Office of Health Reform.  The overall message from the meeting was that it is important to remember that reforming the current health care system can:

• ensure health care stability and security for all Americans
• reduce costs to make health care affordable
• bring stability and improved care to Americans by offering new consumer protections
• protect a patient’s  choice of doctors, hospitals, and insurance plans
• assure quality affordable health care for all Americans

The White House also discussed eight Health insurance Consumer Protections. They can be found at http://www.whitehouse.gov/health-insurance-consumer-protections

It was the one regret Frances Perkins had. The one thing on her list she could not accomplish — health care reform. Some say President Teddy Roosevelt first tried to reform the system. We know Frances Perkins tried. President Johnson signed Medicare into law just over 40 years ago. Many of us remember what happened with the Clinton attempt. Now we are in danger of losing the next opportunity. Congress has gone home without voting on health care reform legislation. News of attempts to derail health care reform by disrupting local town hall meetings are being reported, as well as funding sources who are paying to bus protesters around the country. www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036677/#32276805.  NASW has been notifying members of our Advocacy Listserv about town hall meetings in their district and encouraging members to show up and support health care reform. It seems more important than ever to show up in your district. Let’s see if we can accomplish the last item on Frances Perkins’ list.