Blog of Rights
Elayne
Weiss
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07/20/2011

A Welcome Recommendation for Women's Health

By Elayne Weiss, Washington Legislative Office at 9:53am

Yesterday, in its recommendation to the Department of Health and Human Services, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) confirmed what we have long known: contraception is preventive care.

This is a huge step forward for women’s health, as the IOM’s recommendation is a significant move toward ensuring that contraception is provided without co-pays or other out-of-pocket expenses in new insurance plans under the health reform law. 

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07/18/2011
Religious Discrimination

Obama Administration Can't Make the Case for Religious Discrimination

By Dena Sher, ACLU Washington Legislative Office & Elayne Weiss, Washington Legislative Office at 4:38pm

What a disappointing, and frankly lame, response. Last month, the ACLU, along with more than 50 organizations, sent a letter to President Obama urging him to end taxpayer-funded hiring discrimination based on religion in government contracts. President George W. Bush had rolled back this civil rights protection, which was first established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in 1941. President Obama promised to change this policy, but so far nothing. Thus, the coalition wrote to the president to again ask him to restore the civil rights protection.

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09/19/2011

D.C. Women Get a "Clean" Bill of Health from the Senate

By Elayne Weiss, Washington Legislative Office at 3:57pm

Good news came out of the Senate last week, when the Senate Appropriations Committee passed a "clean" D.C. spending bill that does not impose restrictions prohibiting the District from using its own local funds to provide abortion care for low-income women. Adding to this welcomed news is the fact that, despite concerns, no amendments were offered to impose such a restriction during consideration of the bill.

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07/18/2011
District of Columbia

D.C. Gets Some R-E-S-P-E-C-T…But Not From Congress

By Elayne Weiss, Washington Legislative Office & Vania Leveille, Washington Legislative Office at 11:55am

We're happy to report that last Wednesday, the Obama administration criticized a provision in a bill that bans the District of Columbia from using its own local funds to pay for abortion care for low-income women. The White House issued a Statement of Administration Policy, in which it stated that this provision "undermines the principle of states' rights and of D.C. home rule." 

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06/30/2011
Sexual Assault

Sexual Assault in the Peace Corps

By Elayne Weiss, Washington Legislative Office at 11:30am

This month Congress took an important step to address sexual violence in the Peace Corps. The Kate Puzey Peace Corps Protection Act, named after a volunteer who was murdered while serving in Benin, would require the Peace Corps to provide sexual assault risk-reduction and response training, employ victim advocates, develop sexual assault guidelines and establish a Sexual Assault Advisory Council.

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03/18/2011

A Perfect Time for Abstinence-Only Programs to get the Old Heave-Ho

By Elayne Weiss, Washington Legislative Office at 1:22pm

Over the last several weeks, we’ve heard quite a bit of heated rhetoric about federal spending, including misguided and ill-advised calls to defund Planned Parenthood and the Title X Family Planning Program. But finally there was a breath of fresh air on Tuesday when Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) and Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) introduced a bill to end taxpayer-funded abstinence-only-until-marriage programs.

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