When it passed, we recognized the Affordable Care Act (ACA) as the greatest advance for women’s health in a generation. This new law is already beginning to eliminate the punitive and predatory insurance practices that have penalized women and families for decades, and instead bringing us closer to the day when essential women’s services are [...]
By Ashley On October 1, 2011, I sat on the bathroom floor of the LSAT test center pumping milk for my 5 month old son. I felt dirty, embarrassed, stressed, and alone. Things no one should feel as they are in the midst of taking one of the most important exams of their life. An [...]
Welcome to the third #HERVotes Blog Carnival! This time, the focus is on women and health care. The blog posts below share personal stories and details about the new benefits from the health care reform law, while also offering original insights on what’s at stake for women and health care. You’ll also find personal stories and [...]
I thought it important to bring “she” into the health care picture, thus the slight modification from the “he” used in the original Arabian proverb. The “she” factor for me occurred when my own sister was diagnosed with breast cancer more than 10 years ago. After her first round of surgery, I volunteered to run [...]
This year The Boston Women’s Health Book Collective celebrated the publication of its seminal book “Our Bodies, Ourselves” 40 years ago. This book ignited changes in health care delivery in the US and worldwide. In the early 1970’s women knew very little about our bodies. Doctors had all of the information and told patients what [...]
OK, I admit, that’s a pretty distasteful headline. It could have been worse, though, couldn’t it? No one likes to think about having a long tube inserted through their rectum up into their intestines, which is what it takes to look at the colon. And that long tube is only part of the yucky story. [...]
What do you think is an essential part of your health care? Is it a specific service that most women need at some time in their lives, like maternity care or contraception? Is it something that you hope you’ll never need, but it darn well better be covered when you need it, like reconstruction after [...]
Like thousands of other families the recession has hit ours hard, but it could be worse. My family currently has health insurance, and both my husband and I still have jobs. We live paycheck to paycheck but still I feel lucky. It’s a tenuous luck, a luck that is one medical emergency away from bankruptcy [...]
Massachusetts passed groundbreaking health care reform legislation in 2006, and national health care reform is largely based on the Massachusetts model. When it comes to women’s health, Massachusetts shows us reform is something to celebrate—and lessons from Massachusetts can help ensure that national health reform meets women’s needs. Overall, the numbers already show that health [...]
Contraception is a critical preventive health care tool for women and families. Contraception allows women (and their partners) to plan their pregnancies and avoid pregnancy when they don’t want to have a baby, and planned pregnancies are healthier for women and children. Women with planned pregnancies are more likely to get prenatal care and have [...]
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