Immigrant and Women of Color Urge Legislative Attention to Reproductive and Primary Health Care in NYS

ALBANY, NY (05/12/2009)(readMedia)-- Immigrant women, women of color and their serving organizations are in Albany today meeting with legislators on primary and reproductive health care issues important to their communities and their organizations. These meetings come on the heels of a one-and-a-half day advocacy training conference hosted by the Family Planning Advocates Education Fund's Immigrant Women's Health Initiative. Specifically, advocates seek:

• Passage of Language Access Bill A.733/S.3740 sponsored by Assemblyman Dick Gottfried and Senator Tom Duane
• Broad access to medically accurate, age-appropriate, comprehensive sex education; and
• Strong, state-funded support for family planning services

New York has the second largest immigrant population in the nation-one in five New Yorkers, or four million, are foreign born. More than 150 languages are currently spoken in New York City, while over 30 are spoken in Utica. Three-and-a-half million of these immigrants are limited English proficient (LEP), hindering their ability to effectively communicate with their health care providers. Federal, state and local laws require free interpretation and translation services to LEP patients.

Lack of language assistance services undermines quality of care, and patients needlessly suffer-physically, emotionally, and economically. Consequences include: avoidance of and delays to care, fewer visits for preventive care, more visits to the ER, misdiagnoses, unnecessary tests, increased financial debt and lack of insurance, and poor quality care in general.

"Many of these advocates have very compelling stories about their struggles to establish themselves in the U.S. and their quest for health care services for themselves, their families and their communities," said Dr. Grace Mose, director of the Immigrant Women's Health Initiative. "They will share their experiences with legislators as they make the case for language access in health care services, stable funding for reproductive health care and age-appropriate, medically accurate comprehensive sex education." Dr. Mose is a native of Kenya and author of Thinking the Gusii Way: Insider Perspectives on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM/Cutting) and Strategies for Change.

Enhanced federal CHIP and Medicaid payments to states for translation and interpretation services are provided for under the new Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Reauthorization Act of 2009. "Under this new law, the federal government will pay 75% of the costs, which means New York can provide this reimbursement at a much lower cost than previously projected," said Tracey Brooks, president and CEO of Family Planning Advocates of New York State. "But, New York cannot take advantage of this federal funding stream until Assembly Bill 733 and Senate Bill 3740 are signed into law."

Strong, state-funded support for family planning services

The Executive Budget Proposal for 2009-10 maintained the same level of funding from 2008-09 for family planning. This reflected a two-percent, mid-year cut to family planning funding in 2009, placing unanticipated pressures on our providers' already strained finances. We recognize the unprecedented fiscal challenges facing New York State. And, while few investments generate substantial payoffs these days, family planning certainly is one of those few. For every one dollar spent on family planning services, four dollars in Medicaid spending is saved. "Should the Governor and Legislature contemplate further funding cuts, it's imperative to be mindful of the fact that any reduction in support for family planning services at this point would not only be bad health care policy, it would be counter-productive fiscal policy for New York State," said Brooks.

Greater emphasis on medically accurate, age-appropriate comprehensive sex education An estimated 750,000 American teens become pregnant each year. The U.S. teen birthrate increased for the second year in a row, and our nation has the highest rates of teen pregnancy among comparable countries. With six in 10 young people in New York State having sex before graduation and one in four teenage girls having a sexually transmitted infection, medically accurate, age-appropriate comprehensive sex education is the best solution to protecting young people's health.

"In anticipation that some of the millions of federal dollars spent annually on abstinence-only programs will be made available to New York State as President Obama recently indicated in his budget proposal, we urge its use for comprehensive sex education-a proven method of reducing teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections," said Dr. Mose. This is an issue that affects all communities and we are urging lawmakers to seek solutions that will ensure students have the skills and information they need to make healthy, responsible decisions in all communities throughout the state."

Family Planning Advocates of New York State is a non-profit, statewide organization dedicated to protecting and expanding access to a full range of reproductive health care services. It represents New York's Planned Parenthood affiliates and other family planning centers, as well as hundreds of organizations and thousands of individual members.

The Immigrant Women's Health Initiative is a project of the Education Fund of Family Planning Advocates of New York State. It promotes and protects the reproductive health of women of color, recent immigrants and low-income women of New York State.

Interviews available: Contact Dianne Patterson 518-727-2500

www.edfundfpa.org

Immigrant Women's Health Initiative Advocacy Training 05.11.09

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vB9NQX3j18