NoHLA Board Member Spotlight: Misha Werschkul
Misha joined our Board of Directors in 2014 after witnessing the impact of NoHLA’s research and advocacy on health policy in Olympia. Misha is no stranger to small organizations that pack a policy punch! As the Executive Director of the Washington State Budget & Policy Center, she helps make sure the state budget delivers on...
High Drug Costs but Few Expectations for Change
In 2017, we spent much of our time defending the Affordable Care Act. With all the squabbling about the system we have, Washington, DC was less focused on how to improve it. The latest Kaiser Health Tracking Poll shows over half of the public (52%) wants legislation to bring down the cost of prescription drugs...
Medicare-for-All Gains Steam
Another percolating issue is a Medicare-for-All proposal to extend this program for older and disabled adults to be available to all. The Kaiser poll finds only one-third (36%) of Republicans support it, until it is framed as an option for anyone who wants it (but people could keep the coverage they have) – then their...
Political Discord Brings a New Generation of Activists
A new Washington Post-Kaiser Family Foundation poll found that one in five Americans have taken to the streets to rally or participated in political rallies since early 2016. Twenty percent of these “rallygoers” had never attended before. Nearly half (46%) of them attended in support of women’s rights, 28% for the Affordable Care Act and...
NoHLA Board Member Spotlight: Christina Peters
Christina joined the NoHLA Board of Directors in 2015. Christina collaborated with NoHLA staff and relied on NoHLA’s expertise while she was working on health care reform implementation as the Children’s Alliance’s Health Policy Director. She was honored to join the Board because of their commitment to social justice, undoing institutional racism, and rooting out...
It’s a Wrap!
The fast and furious 60-day 2018 legislative session concluded just over one month ago. Governor Inslee has been busy; he took action on 308 bills from the Legislature, including the 34 health care access bills that we tracked. Our final legislative wrap-up and budget analysis are now available. As shared in this blog post (featuring...
Last “Must Pass” Bill Leaves Important Health Policy Issues Hanging
Congress finally passed an omnibus budget bill last week that President Trump signed last Friday to narrowly avert another government shutdown. Many were hopeful that the last “must-pass” legislation before the midterm elections would include health care marketplace stabilization and the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, but agreement was unattainable. The final deficit-increasing...
NoHLA Helps Washington State Protect Reproductive Health Care Access
This legislative session, we worked with legislators and other advocates to bolster reproductive health access laws to make up for gaps created at the federal level, as described in our last newsletter. Thanks to these efforts, Washington insurers are prevented from limiting access to reproductive health care. NoHLA Staff Attorney Huma Zarif co-authored a blog...
Proposed Provider Refusal Regulations Threaten Patient Access and Choice
The Administration’s proposed rules allowing health care providers to refuse medical care due to religious or moral objections are gravely concerning. Comments were due this week and NoHLA joined others asking for the rule to be entirely rescinded. The rules will result in immediate harm, especially for women, people of color, people living with disabilities, poor and...
Perceptions of Gun Violence and Mental Illness
Disability Rights Washington’s video and media advocacy program, Rooted in Rights, produced a new video to combat the dangerous narratives surrounding mental health and gun violence. This is a great reminder that we can all be more mindful about how we talk about people living with mental illness.