SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION No. 58
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
INTRODUCED MARCH 14, 1996
By Senator LIPMAN
A Concurrent Resolution memorializing Congress to enact health care reform legislation which ensures health care equity for women and meets the health care needs of women.
Whereas, The President of the United States, with the help of Congress, is engaged in developing a health care plan that would ensure that every American citizen has access to some type of comprehensive and affordable health care insurance; and
Whereas, Of the 39.4 million uninsured individuals in the country, 1.1 million of whom live in New Jersey, more than 16 million are women. Women of all ages are twice as likely to be underinsured as men in the United States and women ages 55 to 64 are at the greatest risk of being underinsured; and
Whereas, Women who work receive fewer health benefits than men because women are more likely to work part-time or move in and out of the labor force and more often than not, work in occupations and businesses which do not provide health insurance; and
Whereas, The State of New Jersey is required to fund the abortions of Medicaid-eligible women, placing it at a disadvantage if the federal government's health care plan does not include similar coverage; and
Whereas, Two-thirds of private health insurers find that providing benefits for pregnancy-related services, including termination, is cost-effective and access to a continuum of reproductive services which do not interfere with the patient's and physician's choices should not be diminished; and
Whereas, Fifteen million women of reproductive age have no coverage for maternity care and nearly one in four pregnant women do not receive adequate prenatal care; and this number is higher for minority women. In New Jersey, in 1992, one in four births were to unwed mothers, yet publicly-funded family planning agencies are only able to serve approximately one-third of the women in need of free or subsidized reproductive health care; and
Whereas, Insurance carriers are currently reducing their coverage for maternity stays as a means of reducing costs in spite of adverse medical and psychological consequences to families; and
Whereas, As of September 1995, 7,352 cases of AIDS among females have been reported in New Jersey. New Jersey has the highest percentage of AIDS cases in adult and adolescent females, with 25 percent of its AIDS cases occurring in women as compared to the national average of 14 percent. In 1992, AIDS represented the second leading cause of death in New Jersey for females ages 15 to 44 and the leading cause of death for black females ages 15 to 44. This highlights the fact that women represent the demographic group with the fastest rising incidence of AIDS in the State, as well as nationally; and
Whereas, In 1995, one in nine women in the United States will develop breast cancer, a statistic that will lead to nearly 46,000 deaths. New Jersey, with 7,000 new cases of breast cancer in 1995, has been estimated as having the second highest rate of breast cancer incidence of all 50 states. Mammography has been shown to reduce the risk of breast cancer by one-third for women who are 50 years of age or older; and
Whereas, In 1995, 15,800 new cases of cervical cancer, 32,800 new cases of uterine cancer and 26,600 new cases of ovarian cases were estimated nationally. It has also been estimated that one in three women over the age of 18 have not had a Pap smear test in over three years; and at least seven in 10 deaths from cervical cancer can be prevented if more women had regular Pap smears; and
Whereas, Comprehensive reproductive health care services and education are essential for reducing the incidence and increasing the early detection of breast, ovarian and cervical cancers and for preventing sexually transmitted diseases, unintended pregnancies and HIV infection in women; and
Whereas, Domestic violence is the single largest cause of injury to women in this country and one in three women admitted to an emergency room has been seriously abused, leading to long-term physiological and psychological problems. The response of medical facilities and the mental health system to the problem of domestic violence is currently inadequate; and
Whereas, Women and their children are disproportionately damaged by addictions to alcohol, cigarettes and drugs and access to addiction services is inadequate for women; and
Whereas, Access to health and dental care for Medicaid-eligible persons in New Jersey and across the nation is often unavailable due to the unwillingness of health care professionals to accept the inadequate reimbursement available under the Medicaid program and due to the lack of health care providers in depressed areas; and
Whereas, The general aging of the population combined with the lack of affordable long-term care is increasing the demands for unpaid family care. Seventy-five percent of the disabled elderly in the United States are cared for by family members and other unpaid caregivers, most of whom are women, despite their growing participation in the labor force; and
Whereas, New Jersey has one of the oldest populations of all 50 states. Half of the women over the age of 45, and 90 percent of women over the age of 75 suffer from osteoporosis, the major cause of 1.3 million bone fractures in the United States; yet, osteoporosis is preventable in many cases with the appropriate health counseling; and
Whereas, Current Medicare and Medicaid policies force even middle-income women to "spend down" to the poverty level in order to qualify for health care and long-term care benefits; and
Whereas, Paid health care providers, 75 percent of whom are women, typically earn at or near minimum wage and receive few or no medical benefits of their own; this despite the fact that the participation of nurses, nurse practitioners, midwives and other non-physicians in the delivery of primary and preventive health care would lower the costs of such services; and
Whereas, The lack of research in the area of women's health has led to inadequate health care for women; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of New Jersey (the General Assembly concurring):
1. The Congress of the United States is respectfully memorialized to enact health care reform legislation which ensures equity for women in insurance coverage, the medical and scientific research fields and the health care delivery system and which meets all their health care needs and will allow for greater access to affordable, high quality comprehensive health care.
2. Duly authenticated copies of this resolution signed by the President of the Senate and attested by the Secretary of the Senate and signed by the Speaker of the General Assembly and attested by the Clerk of the General Assembly shall be transmitted to the presiding officers of the United States Senate and House of Representatives, the members of the New Jersey Congressional delegation and Governor Whitman.
STATEMENT
This concurrent resolution memorializes Congress to enact health care reform legislation which ensures equity in health insurance coverage for women. The purpose of the resolution is to urge members of Congress to provide women with access to health insurance that meets their needs and allows them to receive affordable, high quality health care.
Memorializes Congress to enact health care reform legislation that ensures health care equity for women.