NCJW Celebrates Reintroduction of Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance (EACH) Act
Washington DC – National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) applauds the second bicameral introduction of the Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance (EACH) Act, which would end government interference in public and private insurance coverage of abortion care. NCJW Chief Policy Officer Jody Rabhan released the following statement:
“Today, the United States Congress moved one step closer to permanently ending the racist and discriminatory Hyde Amendment and to ensuring abortion access for all with the reintroduction of the Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance (EACH) Act. Led by women of color and their allies, this bill would mandate coverage of all pregnancy-related care, including abortion, in federal health plans and programs and prohibit political interference with the decisions of private health insurance companies to offer coverage for abortion care. We thank Congresswomen Barbara Lee (D-CA), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Diana DeGette (D-CO), and NCJW life member Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), as well as Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Patty Murray (D-WA), and Mazie Hirono (D-HI), for championing this critical legislation. National Council of Jewish Women’s (NCJW) 180,000 advocates across the country look forward to working with them to advance the bill.
“Indeed, it is well past time to set the record straight and fight for those struggling to make ends meet; Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) communities; young people; people living with disabilities; rural communities; immigrants; and LGBTQ individuals who have long been denied access to basic health care through abortion coverage bans. For over 40 years, the Hyde Amendment has pushed time-sensitive, essential abortion care out of reach for countless Americans enrolled in Medicaid, Medicare, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and for federal employees and dependents, military personnel and dependents, Peace Corps volunteers, Indigenous peoples receiving care from federal or tribal programs, pregnant individuals in federal prisons and detention centers, pregnant individuals receiving care from community health centers, and survivors of human trafficking. This policy — which is not and has never been permanent law — is a painful example of how systemic racism permeates our federal laws and regulations and how factors like economic insecurity and immigration status multiply barriers to abortion care.
“As Jews, we are called to pursue tzedek, or justice, for all, particularly for the most marginalized and oppressed among us. Ending Hyde and related coverage bans is a matter of reproductive justice, of economic justice, of racial justice. Everyone deserves respect, dignity, and equal access to the resources needed to control their body, family, and future, including insurance coverage of abortion. We call on Congress to pass the EACH Act to ensure that care is there for all of us — however much we earn, wherever we live, and whoever we are.”
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The National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) is a grassroots organization of volunteers and advocates who turn progressive ideals into action. Inspired by Jewish values, NCJW strives for social justice by improving the quality of life for women, children, and families and by safeguarding individual rights and freedoms. More information on Facebook and on Twitter at @NCJW.