Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Women Guaranteed Access To Rape Kits In Revision Of Landmark Law
CBS News: New Law Aims To Expand Care For Sex Assault Victims, Including Access To Rape Kits
A nearly decade-long fight for better access to care for rape victims is now law. On Tuesday, President Biden signed the Violence Against Women Act, which includes provisions of a bipartisan bill to expand access to care for victims of sexual assault. Washington Senator Patty Murray drafted the legislation after hearing the story of constituent Leah Griffin, of Seattle, who said she was unable to receive a rape examination at her neighborhood hospital in 2014. (Brand, 3/15)
In related news about the Violence Against Women Act —
Maine Beacon: Previously Excluded Wabanaki Tribes Added To Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization
Rep. Chellie Pingree succeeded in meeting a long-sought goal of amending the 1994 Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) to include the Indigenous women of Maine. ... The exemption from the 1994 law, which provided funding towards the investigation and prosecution of violent crimes against women, was just one of the federal protections the tribes in Maine have been excluded from since the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act was passed in 1980. (Neumann, 3/15)
KHN: ‘American Diagnosis’: A Fuller Moon Rising — Revised ‘Violence Against Women Act’ Offers Hope
The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) was reauthorized [by Congress] on March 10, 2022, reaffirming tribes’ authority to prosecute non-Native perpetrators of sexual violence and certain other crimes. This episode looks at the history of VAWA, and how protections for Native women have been tangled in the fine print of the law. (3/16)
In other news from the Biden administration —
Axios: Fix For Affordable Care Act's "Family Glitch" On The Horizon
The Biden administration is reviewing a regulation that experts expect would help close the Affordable Care Act's "family glitch," according to a notice filed last week. The regulation could help as many as 5.1 million people get more affordable coverage by addressing an ACA loophole. The family glitch was created by a provision of the ACA that deals with premium subsidy eligibility — and that lowballs the cost of covering a family. (Owens, 3/15)
The New York Times: Shalanda Young Confirmed To Head Biden’s Budget Office
The Senate confirmed Shalanda Young on Tuesday to serve as the director of the Office of Management and Budget, giving the agency permanent leadership for the first time in more than a year as it prepares the second budget of the Biden administration. ... In her role in the House, Ms. Young helped shepherd more than $3 trillion in pandemic relief packages into law, on top of the annual negotiations over how to keep the government funded, winning bipartisan plaudits for how she conducted herself. (Cochrane, 3/15)
