Nearly two years into the pandemic, many Washingtonians still don’t have access to affordable health coverage and care. Despite seismic shifts in our health care system, too many Washington residents lack health care access due to historical and ongoing inequities related to income, immigration status, disability status, race/ethnicity, age, and gender/sexual identity. On a state...
Category: News
Watershed Health Care Legislation Passes the House
Learn the latest about five essential health care elements in Build Back Better as NoHLA Executive Director Janet Varon and Senior Staff Attorney & Policy Advisor Emily Brice discuss the bill that passed the House this morning! Watch our short video to learn how this could help Washington residents.
NoHLA presents at legislative work session on Medicare affordability
On Wednesday, November 17th, the Joint Legislative Executive Committee on Planning for Aging and Disability Issues began their meeting spotlighting the lack of Medicare affordability in Washington. NoHLA Staff Attorney Ann Vining testified about how older adults and people with disabilities in Washington face additional financial challenges when they transition to Medicare. Washington is one...
Sign on to support immigrant families’ access to health care & other benefits
The Biden Administration is deciding what the federal “public charge” policy should look like. Organizations can join the Protecting Immigrant Families (PIF) public comment letter by Wednesday, October 20th. An updated public charge regulation could ensure that future federal administrations cannot weaponize public charge policy against immigrant families. PIF’s comment responds to the Department of...
Health Priorities in Congress as Budget Fight Continues
NoHLA is working to lift up urgent health priorities in Congress considers spending priorities in its upcoming budget package. Working from priorities President Biden outlined in the Build Back Better proposal, Congressional leaders are working to try to pass a major policy package through “reconciliation” – a budget process that requires only a simple majority...
Support immigrant health care: restore public benefits and sign-on to the Washington health equity campaign
In 1996, Congress constructed an arbitrary five-year barrier preventing immigrants from accessing crucial public benefits that they support with tax dollars. Nearly thirty years later, this cruel policy still keeps many lawfully present Washington immigrants from accessing Medicaid. This month, Representative Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) introduced legislation to restore access to essential health programs Medicaid and...
In solidarity: At least 7 million people lose access to essential health care in Texas
At NoHLA, we have worked for over two decades to ensure access to all health care, including reproductive care. While Washington has some of the strongest laws protecting reproductive access in the country, we are alarmed at the restrictions facing residents of Texas seeking abortions in the wake of the US Supreme Court’s recent decision...