On Tuesday, the Institute of Medicine (IOM), a leading adviser to the federal government on healthcare established by the National Academy of Sciences in 1970, issued a series of groundbreaking recommendations regarding preventive services for women under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). One recommendation in particular - that health insurance plans provide the full range of FDA-approved contraceptive methods free-of-charge to all women with reproductive capacity - bears enormous implications for women's access to reproductive healthcare services, particularly for women of color.

Unintended pregnancies in the United States are disproportionately high for low-income women and racial or ethnic minorities, many of whom face structural barriers to accessing contraception as a result of broad social and economic inequities (e.g., the persistent wage gap, disparate health care coverage rates, etc.). The high out-of-pocket costs of birth control - often hundreds of dollars each year - can be "prohibitively expensive" for many women and force them to choose between affording contraception and paying for basic necessities such as rent or child care. Over half of Latina and Black women between the ages of 18-34 have struggled with the cost of birth control, placing them at greater likelihood of an unintended pregnancy and related health risks.

If the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services accepts the IOM's recommendation that contraception be included as an important part of prevention for women's health care, the nation will be one step closer to fulfilling the ACA's promise of improving access to health care to all Americans. Click here to sign the National Women's Law Center's petition asking Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services, to accept these medically-based recommendations and to support no-cost contraception.

This blog is part of the National Women's Law Center birth control blog carnival, "We've Got You Covered," on the importance of accessible contraception.

With the first half of 2011 behind us and most state legislative sessions adjourned for summer recess, emerging trends in state-level legislative activity suggest challenges ahead for women of color. Yesterday, the Network released a summary of recent state legislation pertinent to our federal policy priorities. The brief, State Legislative Roundup for 2011, provides an overview of state-level wins and losses in three main areas--economic security, immigration reform, and reproductive rights--and highlights what they mean for women of color, their families, and communities.

Thus far in 2011, there have been an unprecedented number of legislative attacks on workers' economic security, immigrant rights, and women's reproductive health. A striking 470 anti-abortion laws made their way onto the agenda of state legislatures, over 800 bills rescinding the collective bargaining rights of public workers were introduced in state capitols, and 5 states successfully passed legislation similar to Arizona's infamous SB 1070. At the same time, these setbacks were accompanied by notable gains: 26 states rejected anti-immigrant measures, 7 states increased the minimum wage, and legislation restricting access to women's reproductive health services was legally challenged and, in some instances, blocked.

As the rest of 2011 unfolds, the Network will continue to monitor legislation in our priority issue areas on an ongoing basis and prepare research and policy analyses that provide stakeholders, lawmakers, and advocates with the information they need to create more inclusive and representative public policies. We hope this mid-year state legislative summary is helpful to you and your organization at this time, and that you will join us in remaining vigilant of federal, state, and local policy proposals that impact women of color, their families, and communities.

Today at 2:00 PM (ET), the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health (NLIRH) will host a telephone "cafecito" regarding the impact of Medicaid and federal budget cuts on Latinas. Event details and description are provided below:

What's going on with Medicaid? The impact of federal budget cuts on Latinas
Date: Wed, 07/20/2011 
Time: 2:00pm - 3:00 pm
Register at: http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/5734/p/salsa/event/common/public/?event_KEY=42813

Grab a cup of your favorite coffee or tea and join us for some real talk about Medicaid and what proposed changes mean to you, your family and community. You will enjoy the discussion led by Rebecca Medina, Policy Analyst (NLIRH), and featuring guests:
 
Deborah Reid, Senior Attorney, National Health Law Program
Anne Swerlick, Deputy Director, Florida Legal Services
Berta Colon, Deputy Director of Public Interests Projects - Invited

Latinas and immigrant communities stand to lose the most in current Medicaid negotiations in Congress. Medicaid is the cornerstone of health care for low-income Americans; more than 58 million individuals are currently enrolled in Medicaid, including 13 million Latino adults and 9 million Latino children.

Slashes to Medicaid and CHIP program would not only impact those programs' beneficiaries, but would financially destabilize already struggling service providers like community health centers, which are point of access for many Latinas and their families regardless of their insurance status of ability to pay.
 
Join us for a virtual cafecito where we'll discuss the challenges current negotiations present to Latina communities.

House Republicans voted 234-190 last night to pass HR 2560, the "Cut, Cap, and Balance Act of 2011." The vote split cleanly along party lines, with Democrats representing 95 percent of all votes in opposition of the bill and Republicans comprising 98 percent of all votes in favor of the act.

The legislation now advances to the Senate, with many anti-poverty advocates anticipating and hoping that it will be "dead on arrival." President Obama, in a statement of administration policy, denounced the bill as "inconsistent" with the "responsible framework" of "provid[ing] economic security to all Americans no matter their circumstances." The statement asserted that the President would veto the Cut, Cap, and Balance Act of 2011 if presented to him for signature and summarized some of the problematic aspects of the legislation in the following paragraph:

The bill would undercut the Federal Government's ability to meet its core commitments to seniors, middle-class families and the most vulnerable, while reducing our ability to invest in our future.  H. R. 2560 would set unrealistic spending caps that could result in significant cuts to education, research and development, and other programs critical to growing our economy and winning the future.  It could also lead to severe cuts in Medicare and Social Security, which are growing to accommodate the retirement of the baby boomers, and put at risk the retirement security for tens of millions of Americans.

The President has instead shown support for the "Gang of Six" deficit reduction plan drafted by three Democratic and three Republican senators, though Republicans reportedly want "more structural changes to Medicare and Medicaid than the Gang of Six plan proposes." The Gang of Six proposal would reduce the deficit by $3.7 trillion.

On Tuesday, July 19, 2011, the U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote on HR 2560, a bill "to cut, cap, and balance the Federal budget." As noted by the Coalition on Human Needs, the bill cuts spending deeply in FY 2012, establishes stringent caps for discretionary and mandatory spending for the next 10 years, and hinges raising of the debt ceiling to passage in Congress of a constitutional amendment to balance the budget. 

The spending limits would be enforced by automatic cuts, as in the old Gramm-Rudman-Hollings law from 1985. Unlike that law, however, low-income programs are NOT exempt from the automatic spending cuts. Consequently, social safety net programs that benefit economically disadvantaged families and communities would be subject to cuts.

On July 16, 2011, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) issued a statement regarding the "Cut, Cap, and Balance Act," calling it "one of the most ideologically extreme pieces of legislation to come before Congress in years." According to the CBPP, the plan would:

- lock in cuts over the next ten years at least as severe as those proposed in Rep. Paul Ryan's budget plan, including $111 billion in immediate cuts that would cause the loss of approximately 700,000 jobs;

- subject programs for the poorest Americans to across-the-board cuts, even as it protects tax breaks and tax subsidies for the wealthiest Americans;

- hold the increase in the debt limit needed by August 2, 2011 hostage to approval by two-thirds of the House and the Senate of a constitutional amendment effectively barring any revenue-raising measures; and

- require Congress to approve at least one of three consititutional balanced budget amendments before raising the debt limit, all of which establish a constitutional requirement that total federal expenditures may not exceed 18 percent of the GDP.

This morning, the Center for American Progress released an infographic demonstrating that capping federal spending to 18 percent of the GDP - the lowest level since 1966 - is both "impractical," "untenable" and "would require the slashing of important and popular programs far below even the draconian levels of the 2012 budget approved by the House earlier this year."

To view the Center for American Progress infographic depicting how the U.S. economy has changed since 1966, click here. To read the CBPP statement on the "Cut, Cap, and Balance Act" that will be considered by the House tomorrow, please click here.

On June 29, 2011, the Economic Policy Institute issued a briefing paper on the importance of a federal paid sick days policy for the nearly 40 million private-sector workers in jobs without such benefits. "The Need for Paid Sick Days" underscores the link between access to paid sick days and the long-term economic security of workers who are forced to take time off without pay, often risking their jobs in an unforgiving economy and forced to choose between vital income and the care of sick dependents.

According to the brief, employees without paid sick days are more likely to go to work while ill, resulting in reduced productivity that undermines both their professional standing and their employer's bottom line. The alternative - taking time off without pay - often leads to severe economic consequences for workers and their families. For a family of four (two children and two working adults earning average wages for employees lacking paid sick time), missing merely three days of work could result in the loss of the family's entire health care budget. For a single parent, the situation is even more dire: a two-child, single-parent family earning the average wage cannot miss even three days of work without falling below the federal poverty line. The brief notes that over a third (36 percent) of working mothers whose children have chronic conditions have no paid leave whatsoever.

As a result of occupational segmentation, educational disparities, and the racialized gap between low-skilled and high-skilled labor, workers of color are disproportionately represented in low-wage, hourly jobs that fail to offer paid sick days and other essential benefits.  According to 2010 Bureau of Labor Statistics data, over a quarter of all Black and Latino workers are employed in service occupations - a sector that employs less than a fifth of whites (16 percent). Conversely, only 19 percent of Latino workers and 29 percent of Black workers hold management and professional occupations, such as business and financial operations, whereas approximately 38 percent of white workers are employed in this sector.

With Black and Latino workers the least likely of all racial and ethnic groups to have access to paid sick days, expanded access to this essential benefit is a racial justice and economic justice issue. Click here to add your voice to the call for a federal paid sick days standard and urge your members of Congress to sponsor the Healthy Families Act, legislation that would mandate workplaces to provide paid sick days to workers nation-wide.

From our partners at the Coalition on Human Needs:

Take Action Now: Join our National Budget Call-In Days on Wednesday, July 13 through Friday, July 15. Call your senators toll-free at 888-907-1485 and tell them that middle-class and struggling families must not bear the brunt of the budget cuts. Demand a budget plan that reduces the deficit responsibly and works for all Americans - not just millionaires and big business. Urge your senators to oppose harmful cuts or caps to programs serving our nation's most vulnerable communities.

Tell them: Please prevent harmful cuts or caps to low/moderate-income programs in the negotiations to reduce the deficit. Please insist on fair increases in revenues to prevent reckless cuts to Medicaid, Medicare, food stamps, and other essential services.

Though reducing the long-term deficit is an important step toward stabilizing and growing our nation's economy, it is critical that it is done responsibly. Americans deserve a plan that gradually reduces the deficit without reckless cuts to Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security, and other vital programs serving millions of families, children, seniors, and struggling communities.

Join our National Budget Call-In Days on Wednesday, July 13 through Friday, July 15 and make sure your voice is heard. Call your senators toll-free at 888-907-1485.

Some in Congress would jeopardize our economy by refusing any revenue increase and targeting trillions of dollars in cuts to essential health, nutrition, education, employment, housing, and other programs. Work is proceeding this week to craft a deficit reduction deal that may make decisions for the next decade. Please tell your Senators that our future depends on essential investments, and that the wealthiest among us can afford to pay their share.

We support a budget plan that follows these basic principles. Any agreement to reduce the deficit must:

•    Protect millions of vulnerable Americans who rely on federal support to meet their critical needs from the burden of deficit reduction;
•    Rely at least as much on fair revenue increases as on spending cuts;
•    Reject any effort to impose an amendment to the Constitution that would require a balanced budget every year, regardless of the state of the economy; and
•    Protect investments - such as public infrastructure, education and job training - that are vital to our nation's economic advancement.

With so much at stake, it is more important than ever that your senators hear from you.

Join our National Budget Call-In Days on Wednesday, July 13 through Friday, July 15 and call your senators toll-free at 888-907-1485. Make sure your voice is heard!

Alicia Biggs writes for the Daily Labor Report about the 2011 National Summit on Paid Sick Days and Paid Family Leave that took place July 10-12, 2011 in Washington, D.C. Excerpts from the article, "Panelists Say Lack of Paid Sick Leave Undermines Economic Security, Kills Jobs" are included below.

The lack of access to paid sick days by some 40 million U.S. workers contributes to a lack of economic security for those workers and their families, C. Nicole Mason, executive director of Women of Color Policy Network, said July 11 at a forum sponsored by the National Partnership for Women and Families and Family Values at Work.

Mason, who moderated the opening session at the National Summit on Paid Sick Days and Paid Family Leave, said "the issue of paid sick leave is one we believe integral to building the long-term economic security of working families and an essential ingredient of a quality job in this new economy."

Mason defined quality job as one that is safe, pays a living wage, has flexibility and access to paid sick leave, and provides opportunities for advancement.

Meanwhile, Ellen Bravo, executive director for Family Values at Work, said some 23 percent of U.S. workers have lost a job or have been threatened with the loss of a job for taking care of themselves or a family member. Bravo said people who have paid sick days are more likely to go to the doctor, take care of themselves, and recover. She also said businesses that offer paid sick days retain their employees "much longer, have higher productivity, and lower health care costs."

"It is lack of paid sick days and lack of paid family leave that are the job killers and income killers," she said.

Workers Left to Negotiate Benefits on Own

Some 40 years ago, low- to moderate-income workers could depend on unions to help ensure they received benefits and wages that constituted a quality job, Mason said. In the 1950s, about 35 percent of all private sector workers were represented by a union, she said. Currently, only 7.2 percent of private sector workers are unionized.

"Marked decline in union membership over time has meant that many workers are left to negotiate benefits and wages on their own," Mason said. "Recently, attacks on collective bargaining in [some] states have not only threatened to undermine families but entire communities."

As the economy continues to recover from the recent recession, many employees are reluctant to ask for time off, expanded benefits, or higher wages for fear of losing their job, she said.

However, paid sick leave has gained significant momentum in some states, particularly in Connecticut, she said. Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy (D) July 1 signed into law legislation (S.B. 913) that will require employers with 50 or more employees to provide certain service workers with paid sick leave, making the state the first in the nation to enact such a measure (130 DLR A-3, 7/7/11).

To continue reading and view the article in its entirety as originally posted on the Daily Labor Report, click here.

Today, the Women of Color Policy Network announced the 2011 National Fellows for the Lead the Way Leadership Initiative for Emerging Women of Color Executive Directors and Mid-Level Managers.

Each year, the Network scans the country for 30 of the brightest and most promising women of color leaders working in their communities on a range of pressing social issues from education to economic security.

This year's cohort is exceptionally talented and representative of some of the country's foremost national and community-based non-profit organizations committed to building stronger communities. Fellows include:

Executive Directors
•Larisa Caicedo, Nueva Vida
•Ejim Dike, Urban Justice Center
•Adriana Flores, Latinas Unidas por Un Nuevo Amanecer
•Alicia Garza, People Organized to Win Employment Rights
•Avis Jones-DeWeever, National Council of Negro Women
•Dominique Jordan-Turner, Posse Foundation
•Nadine Duplessy Kearns, New Community for Children
•Linda Sarsour, Arab American Association of New York
•Angelica Solis, Alliance for a Better Community
•Satira Streeter, Ascensions Psychological and Community Services
•Meshawn Tarver, Common Ground Health Clinic
•Esperanza Tervalon-Daumont, Oakland Rising
•Rebecca Thompson, Young People 4
•Sonya Garcia Ulibarri, YouthBiz

Mid-Level Managers
•Lymari Benitez, Harlem Children's Zone
•Shoshana Brown, Caribbean Women's Health Association
•Takiema Bunche-Smith, Brooklyn Kindergarten Society
•Sunaena Chhatry, Earned Asset Research Network
•Sonia Gonzales, Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights
•Courtney Killingsworth, Global Kids, Inc.
•Rukia Lumumba, Center for Community Alternatives
•Suma Mathai, Los Angeles Center for Law and Justice
•Michelle Shireen Muri, Northwest Immigrant Rights Project
•Roweena Naidoo, Women's Foundation of Colorado
•Vanessa Rodriguez, Alliance for a Better Community
•Anita Sinha, Advancement Project
•Mana Tahaie, YWCA Tulsa
•Choua Vue, Illinois Action for Children
•Amber Washington, PolicyLink
•Shaune Zunzanykia, Women's Funding Network

Over the course of the fellowship year, Fellows will participate in a five-day intensive leadership retreat and on-going learning with leadership coaches on issues related to program management and development; fundraising and sustainability; and communications and branding. To learn more about the program, visit: http://wagner.nyu.edu/wocpn/our_work/leadtheway.php 

Full bios and photos of the 2011 cohort are available at: http://wagner.nyu.edu/wocpn/our_work/LTW_Announcement.pdf

Today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) of the U.S. Department of Labor released the latest unemployment numbers for June 2011 in a monthly news release titled "The Employment Situation." They indicate that the economy added only 18,000 jobs last month, a steep decline compared to the 54,000 jobs added in May and 244,000 jobs added in April. The overall unemployment rate rose slightly to 9.2 percent - the highest unemployment level to date in 2011.

As the Network has previously noted, the recovery continues to leave a large segment of the workforce behind: unemployment rates remain disproportionately high for workers of color, particularly Blacks and Latinos. While the unemployment rate was 8.1 percent for whites in June 2011, Blacks and Latinos experienced much higher rates of unemployment at 16.2 percent and 11.6 percent, respectively.

Blacks and Latinos consistently experience greater unemployment rates than whites, Asians, and the overall average unemployment rate for all workers. The unemployment gap widened during the "Great Recession," but disparate unemployment rates among Black and Latino workers pre-date the economic downturn. In December 2007, the official start of the recession, the unemployment rate for Black workers (9.0 percent) was already twice that of white workers (4.4 percent).

Though the most recent recession was declared officially over by the National Bureau of Economic Research in June 2009, Black unemployment rates have only dipped below the June 2009 figure of 14.7 once. Instead, unemployment among Black workers - who steadfastly hold the highest unemployment rates of all documented racial and ethnic groups - skyrocketed to 16.5 percent in January, March, and April of 2010. Latinos hold the second highest unemployment rates, which peaked at 13.2 percent in November of 2010, excluding workers who are a part of the shadow economy and unable to file for unemployment benefits.

A true recovery can leave no community behind. We must make a targeted effort to decrease unemployment in low-income communities of color by increasing funding for job creation programs, promoting workforce development and training opportunities that create career pathways for low-income workers with low education levels, and providing employer incentives to recruit, retain, and promote workers of color in the labor force.

To learn more about the Network's commitment to reducing unemployment and building economic security in communities of color, please review our federal policy agenda: http://wagner.nyu.edu/wocpn/publications/files/2011.112th_Congress_Federal_Policy_Agenda.pdf

As part of the ongoing budget negotiations, the Obama Administration recently signaled that it would accept tens of billions of dollars in cuts to Medicaid and Medicare. Administration officials have indicated a willingness to accept a $100 billion or more reduction in Medicaid spending over 10 years. These cuts particularly impact women of color, their families and communities and would be devastating to low-income families, who often rely on Medicaid as their only source of health coverage. Over 50 million individuals are currently enrolled in Medicaid. Women represent more than two-thirds of the adults who receive Medicaid, and nearly sixty percent of children participating in Medicaid represent communities of color. Because women of color are disproportionately represented in low-wage or part-time jobs that fail to offer employer-sponsored health insurance, they would be among the first to feel the cuts to this vital program.

Severe cuts to Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Plan (CHIP) at the federal level would shift the cost burden onto states. Already facing budget deficits, states would be forced to scale back the services offered by Medicaid and CHIP and/or cut payments to health care providers to compensate for the reduction in federal funding.  The result would be decreased access to quality health care for the poorest members of our society, which further exacerbates the health disparity gap and leaves the most vulnerable at even greater risk.

Attempting to save $100 billion over ten years through Medicaid spending reductions would come at the cost of the health and well-being of low-income individuals. In contrast, adding an additional tax bracket for millionaires and billionaires that is just 3 percent above current levels would save $200 billion over ten years--twice as much as the cuts to Medicaid spending. Similarly, closing a tax loophole for hedge fund managers would raise $4 billion annually from the 25 wealthiest hedge fund managers alone and as much as $20 billion each year in overall revenue.

Please join the Women of Color Policy Network in calling on Congress to stop balancing the budget on the backs of the most vulnerable. Contact your Senators and Representative today at 1-866-922-4970, tell them that cuts to Medicaid are not acceptable, and urge them to reject all proposals that restructure or defund this critical program.

This blog is part of the MomsRising blog-a-thon on the importance of Medicaid.

On Thursday, July 7, 2011, from 8:00 PM - 9:00 PM (EDT), the National Organization for Women (NOW) will host a budget webinar with NOW President Terry O'Neill to discuss how the budget discussion affects women. It will be a 15 minute presentation, followed by questions.

The situation is critical: FY 2012 budget negotiations are taking place behind doors with party leaders and the White House. The economic safety net for women, low-income families, persons with disabilities, young children and seniors is at stake. Threatened are programs that women disproportionately depend on, such as Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, food stamps, Head Start and many others. Additionally, scores of government programs that disproportionately employ women are at stake. Draconian spending caps and a risky balanced budget proposal could be part of the package.

In May 2011, NOW joined several other women's organizations in calling for the President to include women in discussions about reducing the nation's deficit. In a letter to the President, the organizations stressed the importance of including women's voices in any negotiations on Social Security, Medicare, and other essential programs on which women disproportionately rely.

To register for Thursday's webinar, click here: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/531916320

On Saturday, July 2, C. Nicole Mason, executive director of the Women of Color Policy Network (WOCPN) at NYU Wagner, will join Dr. Cornel West, Reverend Al Sharpton, Soledad O'Brien, and other thought leaders, scholars and civil rights trail blazers in New Orleans for Essence magazine's 2011 music festival. The 'empowerment series' at this premier cultural event for African Americans attracts more than 10,000 people each day, bringing together dozens of expert speakers to discuss pressing policy issues affecting women of color, their families, and communities.

As part of a panel on the "State of Black Women," Mason will be sharing some of the challenges that Black women face, as well as opportunities that exist to build the economic security of communities of color. Consider the following:

• Black women hold the highest poverty rates of any group. Black women have a poverty rate of 26.5 percent - a rate more than double that of white women and nearly triple that of white men.
• For every dollar earned by white men, Black women earn just 61 cents.
• Nearly half of all Black women have zero or negative wealth.
• Black women have the highest mortality rate of any racial or ethnic group, are 3 to 4 times likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than white women, 15 times more likely to be infected with HIV/AIDS, and face greater health disparities and access to care across the board.
• Less than 19 percent of Black women have a bachelor's degree or higher.

Though Black women and girls rank low or last on nearly every social indicator of well-being, we have also made tremendous strides that cannot go unrecognized. Over the last several decades, much has changed about the Black woman's experience in the home, on the job, and in society. From Oprah Winfrey to Ruth Simmons to the presence of Michelle Obama as the first Black First Lady of the United States, Black women, now more than ever, are blazing paths only imagined by their grandmothers or their mothers.

Mason will also be interviewed by CNN on Friday, July 1, at 12:30 pm EST. Viewers can visit CNN.com shortly thereafter to join the conversation on how best to advance the social and economic well-being of all women of color and their families.