California Chapter: Advocacy

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California - Advocacy Issues and Priorities

Currently we are:

Working to maintain funding for the California Birth Defects Monitoring Program.
Asking health insurance plans to provide life saving treatment for infants born with an inborn error of metabolism.
Workng on efforts to improve access to care for pregnant women, infants and children.
Advocating for funding of smoking cessation and prevention programs for pregnant women and adolescents of childbearing age to decrease risks of preterm births associated with smoking.
Advocating to maintain current funding for Maternal and Child Health programs.

2008 California Legislation Sponsored by March of Dimes:

AB 30 (EVANS) Medical Foods: This bill would require health plans to cover the cost of treatment for children with inborn errors of metabolism. This bill has passed the Assembly and is awaiting a hearing in the Senate Health Committee. Click here to read the California Health Benefits Review Program analysis.
AB 1962 (DE LA TORRE) Maternity Coverage: This bill will eliminate a loop-hole in current California law that allows health insurance companies to drop maternity coverage from policies. This bill is awaiting hearings in the Assembly and Senate.
AB 2599 (de LEON) California Birth Defects Monitoring Program: This bill provides technical clean up language to current law which has made it difficult for researchers to access necessary data and samples to conduct research for discovering the causes and prevention of birth defects. This bill is awaiting hearings in the Assembly and Senate.

We will need more letters, emails and calls when bills are sent to the governor. To help, please join our advocacy network below.

See what you missed at Capitol Day

Advocacy Success in California

In 2004 the March of Dimes California Chapter volunteers and staff worked hard to change California's Newborn Screening law. We were successful in getting the state to expand the number of treatable disorders the state screens for at birth from 4 to more than 40. California moved from among the lowest number of disorders screened for to among the top for states providing this service to all babies born.

In 2005, March of Dimes successfully obtained a $18 million spending authorization in the governor's budget to expand newborn screening in California.

2006 was another banner year for our advocacy team with the addition of Cystic Fibrosis and Biotinidase to the expanded newborn screening panel of tests. Hearing screening was also expanded to all babies born in California.

2007 provided our volunteers an opportunity to work in the state budget process as we secured funding for newborn hearing screening expansion and the California Birth Defects Monitoring Program.

Learn more about Newborn Screening and the March of Dimes.

Learn more about California's Newborn Screening Program.

Every year we work to restore funding in the state budget for key maternal and child health programs, improve access to health care for women and children, and improve the care pregnant women receive in California's hospitals. We will continue to be the strongest advocacy voice for women of child bearing age and children at our state capitol. Please join us by adding your name to the Advocacy Network on this page.

Questions or comments about our advocacy efforts in California should be directed to CaliforniaPublicAffa@MarchofDimes.com

The Advocacy Network is made up of volunteers and staff who promote the March of Dimes mission agenda by contacting the governor and state legislators in response to Chapter action alerts. This year's issues and priorities include those described above.

• Sign up for the advocacy network

One of the responsibilities of the March of Dimes Office of Government Affairs is to direct public policy studies that support national and Chapter advocacy priorities.

• National Public Policy Research


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