Welcome to Hadassah's Advocacy Updates, providing timely information about our Zionist and domestic policy work and how you can get involved.

Speak Out to Protect Women's Health Coverage

Hadassah's mission — in Israel and the United States — is inextricably linked with our commitment to health and the power to heal. Together, we support Hadassah Medical Organization's world-class treatment and research in Israel, and here in the US, we advocate for women's health equity.

Congress is moving forward with plans to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, which has troubling implications for the future of women's health — and the health of all Americans. Hadassah reaffirms its long-standing support for health care access and affordability. We call on Congress to ensure that any new measures maintain key women's health provisions and coverage availability, and to prevent lapses in care while a new plan is implemented.

During the last 30 years, Hadassah's National Board and delegates have passed eight health reform policy statements addressing women's health, research, prevention, patients' rights, elder health, and access to affordable, quality care. Today, we promote gender equity in medicine from prevention and diagnosis, to treatment and cure. We speak out because a woman's health is about more than her reproductive cycle, it's about her life cycle.

Women should not face discrimination in health care — either charged more or denied coverage because of gender — and pregnancy must never be classified as a preexisting condition. Mandated coverage of well-woman visits and maternity care improves wellness and saves lives. Access to free and low-cost preventive health services — from mammograms and contraception to nutrition counseling — empowers women with knowledge to make appropriate and informed medical decisions for themselves and their families. Support and funding for federal Offices of Women's Health are essential for expanding inclusion and analysis of women and female test subjects in public health and medical research.

Congress must also ensure that millions of Americans do not lose access to or experience interruptions in care. Currently 11.5 million people receive coverage through state and federal health care marketplaces and, as of 2015, an estimated 11 million Medicaid enrollees became eligible through state-level expansion.

All provisions and deficiencies under current health care laws must be addressed through comprehensive bipartisan negotiations. Urge your Senators and Representatives to protect women's health and work toward a quality, affordable, and equitable health care system for all.