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Women's Health Wednesday: Affordable Care Act's Benefits for Women

Floor Speech

Date: March 21, 2012
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Women Entitlements and the Safety Net Health Insurance Health and Health Care

Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas. Madam Speaker, for decades, women in this country have unfairly borne the burden of excessive health care costs. Fortunately, through the Affordable Care Act, millions of women no longer have to worry about going bankrupt if they get sick.

The Affordable Care Act ensures that being a woman will no longer be treated as a preexisting condition. The Affordable Care Act bans insurance companies from requiring women to obtain a referral for access to necessary OB/GYN care and bans insurance companies from dropping women when they get sick or pregnant.

Despite these accomplishments in women's health, the war on women continues in Texas. Governor Perry's political decision to forgo nearly $40 million in Federal funding for the Texas Medicaid Women's Health Program will leave 130,000 women without access to preventative health services.

Despite these obstacles, I will continue to fight for the increased access to quality health care for women in Texas.


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