Press Release
The Best Kept Secrets about Health Reform

Misinformation. Confusion. Chaos. In many ways, those have been the hallmarks of the health insurance reform debate, leaving the public with little clear understanding about essential elements of the bills the House and Senate have passed.

To bring clarity where there has been confusion, and shed light on some little-known provisions that will result in big improvements for women, the National Partnership for Women & Families has produced a new fact sheet, Improving Health Care for Women & Families: The Top Ten Best Kept Secrets about Health Insurance Reform and Why Congress Should Pass It Without Delay.

“To date, there has been more heat than light in the reform debate, which has left millions of people without the information they need to assess the impact of various proposals and identify what reforms are most important to them,” said National Partnership for Women & Families President Debra L. Ness. “For instance, not enough people know that the legislation Congress has passed would prohibit insurers from charging women more because of their gender or age, or denying or dropping coverage based on pre-existing conditions. And there are a host of specific benefits that could make a real difference for women and families.”

The new National Partnership fact sheet describes key elements of the legislation that would, among other things:

  • Cover the full costs of a range of preventive services and immunizations;
  • Allow recent high school and college graduates to stay on their parents’ plans until age 26;
  • Give pregnant and parenting women in Medicaid access to new services;
  • Close the “donut hole” in Medicare;
  • Help nursing mothers breastfeed at work;
  • Provide tax credits to small businesses that provide insurance to their employees; and
  • Promote innovative ways to promote better coordinated care.

    The fact sheet is being distributed to policymakers and advocates.

  • For more information, contact us:

    National Partnership for Women & Families logo

    National Partnership Media Line
    (202) 986-2600
    press@nationalpartnership.org

    About the National Partnership for Women & Families

    The National Partnership for Women & Families is a nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy group dedicated to promoting fairness in the workplace, reproductive health and rights, access to quality, affordable health care and policies that help all people meet the dual demands of work and family.

    More information is available at NationalPartnership.org.

    For general inquiries, please email press@nationalpartnership.org.

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