April Shaw

In honor of Women's History Month, women in the Network’s Health Equity Working Group have highlighted legal or policy issues affecting women’s health that they see as critically important. The topics addressed cover: economic stability and well-being, pregnancy discrimination, period poverty, and maternal depression. The law and policy solutions discussed here have the potential to improve life for women and girls for generations to come.

In September, President Trump issued an Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping (the “Order”), with stated goals  to promote unity and to “combat offensive and Anti-American race and sex stereotyping” within the federal workforce. The intent of the Order is to restrict trainings on gender and race discrimination that have “divisive concepts.” This assessment uses a public health lens to highlight four fundamental shortcomings of the Order.

With growing interest in tackling structural and other forms of racism, this is a good time to consider how theory is fundamental to bringing about meaningful, practical change. The theories that guide us may be consciously thought out or unreflectively adopted. Therefore, it is necessary to intentionally unpack and understand the norms and assumptions that are built into our day-to-day practices and long-term strategies to bring about reforms.

This fact sheet addresses 988’s key features, including why it was adopted, current suicide trends and risks, covered provider obligations and timing, and some key features of recent supportive legislation.

Although there has been some attention to the mental health impacts of student loan debt, little attention has been directed towards the harm experienced by those with student loan debt who have been defrauded by for-profit colleges. These individuals have massive debt after pursuing an education that does not afford any of the opportunities typically associated with higher education. The harm they experience is not merely economic—it’s a social harm with deeply damaging impacts on mental health.

This webinar introduced participants to key principles in Indian law and Tribal public health law, discussed the impact of COVID-19 in Indian Country, and identified response strategies based upon practical experience.

Following the killing of George Floyd, localities have increasingly declared racism to be a public health emergency or crisis. Despite growing recognition of the fact that racism is a key contributor to poor health in communities of color, there is still insufficient attention to the role of policing and systemic racism as institutions that have powerful impacts on the health and well-being of people of color. This issue brief provides an assessment of how structural racism and policing function as critical social determinants of health for Black people and people of color generally.

This issue brief examines evidence of racial disparities with respect to COVID-19 infections and deaths, possible causes, and legal protections against race discrimination. It also provides an overview of CSC planning, including key ethical features that may be utilized to ensure that CSC planning incorporates concerns about racial inequity.

This issue brief explains the Final Rule and how it altered the public charge analysis. It also addresses some common myths about the scope and applicability of the Final Rule and highlights public health concerns in the context of the chilling effect on the use of non-cash benefits.

This webinar provided an overview of the Final Rule, its anticipated impact, and a discussion of some core legal arguments submitted in federal district court on how the Final Rule conflicts with Congress’ health policy goals.

Title X is the only federally funded program for low-income patients exclusively dedicated to providing family planning and preventative services, including contraception and screenings for breast cancer, cervical cancer and STDs. Title X serves some four million people a year, most of them women. However, recent rule changes threaten to severely limit women’s access to these essential services.