WAWH Supporter E-Update August 1st: A Day of Celebration for Women's Health! Wisconsin Women Continue to Win with the Affordable Care Act!
Greetings!
Wisconsin women are winning with the Affordable Care Act! The law is already making health care more affordable for women and our families care by requiring insurance companies to cover women's preventive health services without additional charges, like co-pays and deductibles. In 2008, one in four women reported going without necessary health care because they could not afford it. Expensive co-pays are a major barrier, preventing us from getting the care we need - more than half of women have delayed or avoided preventive care because of its cost! The affordable preventive care guaranteed by the ACA will create a powerful tool for improving the health of all women. As of the Fall of 2010 all new plans had to start covering these important preventive health services for women without copays. As of this summer, 413,000 Wisconsin women have already been receiving these preventive services without financial barriers.       mammograms                 sexual health screenings       anemia & hepatitis B screening for pregnant women       blood pressure, diabetes and cholesterol testing       counseling about quitting smoking, losing weight, choosing healthy foods, treating depression, reducing alcohol use Starting today, August 1, 2012 all new plans will have to start covering these important preventive health services for women without copays:        Comprehensive contraceptive care.The full range of Food and Drug Administration approved contraceptive methods, including birth control pills, IUDs as well as sterilization procedures, patient education and counseling for all women with reproductive capacity.        Screening and counseling for intimate partner violence.Screening and counseling for women and adolescents about current and past violence and abuse so that providers can address health concerns about safety and other health problems that may be associated with interpersonal and domestic violence.        Screening for gestational diabetes. Screening pregnant women for gestational diabetes, a form of the disease which develops during pregnancy and occurs more often among women of color. Gestational diabetes increases a woman's risk of developing other forms of the disease in the future as well as her child's risk of being overweight and insulin resistant.        Breastfeeding counseling and equipment.Making trained breastfeeding counselors available to all women during pregnancy and after they give birth and making breastfeeding equipment available to those who want it.        Screening for sexually transmitted infections (STIs).Counseling all sexually active women on STIs annually; screening all sexually active women for HIV infection annually; and adding a test for high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) - an infection that can cause cervical cancer -- to conventional cervical cancer screening for women starting at age 30 and continuing every three years. These recommendations for counseling and screening are critical at time when more and more women are becoming infected by risk behaviors of their partners that the women may not know about.        Well-woman preventive care visits.Conducting at least one well-woman preventive care visit for adult women each year so that women can get the recommended preventive services The Affordable Care Act is helping women get AFFORDABLE PREVENTIVE health care!  To learn more, visit www.raisingwiwomensvoices.org or our blog at http://rwwv.wordpress.com.