SHAHEEN: HEALTH REFORM ALREADY HELPING THOUSANDS OF NEW HAMPSHIRE WOMEN

(Concord, NH) – U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) this morning highlighted how thousands of New Hampshire women are already benefiting from preventive care services offered by the Affordable Care Act (ACA). During her remarks at a New Hampshire Women’s Health Network forum, Shaheen specifically noted that over 250,000 New Hampshire women now have guaranteed access to free preventive healthcare services including mammograms.  She also highlighted that women now have access to free contraception because of provisions included in the new healthcare law.  This morning’s event was part of a larger effort to educate New Hampshire women and families about the new healthcare law in advance of October 1 when open enrollment on the law’s health insurance marketplace begins. 

“Thousands of New Hampshire women are already benefitting from the Affordable Care Act’s preventive healthcare reforms and we have the potential to help thousands more,” Shaheen said. “The New Hampshire Women’s Network is doing remarkable work educating families about the ACA and I’m excited to continue working with them to promote healthcare reform.” 

Shaheen has been a leader on women’s healthcare throughout her career.  Earlier this year she worked to pass the Violence Against Women Act reauthorization and also sponsored an amendment to the senate budget to protect women’s access to primary, preventative and reproductive healthcare.

Last year, Shaheen’s amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act won bipartisan support and ended a three decade-long discriminatory policy that banned women in the military from accessing abortion coverage in cases of rape or incest.   The legislation was signed into law by President Obama in January.