[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 40 (Thursday, March 18, 2010)]
[House]
[Pages H1637-H1638]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          ``AIN'T I A WOMAN?''

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Wisconsin (Ms. Moore) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin. It's Women's History Month, and it's a great 
month for us to pass comprehensive health care reform. Here we are, 
again, women, in another epic battle for equality between men and 
women. As Alice Paul once said, When you put your hand to plow, you 
can't put it down until you get to the end of the road. And here we are 
now.
  Staggering statistics on women and health care: 18 percent of women 
are uninsured; 26 percent of single mothers and 41 percent of low-
income women are uninsured; 52 percent of women have foregone getting 
the care that they needed because of the cost, including not filling 
prescriptions, skipping a medical test, or not going to the doctor.
  For decades, the health insurance industry has used every trick in 
the book, Mr. Speaker, to deny women the care that they need, to charge 
women more for the same services as men, and even to drop their 
coverage when they might need it most. Women face so many barriers in 
getting affordable health care, and our rights have been trampled on 
for too long.
  This Women's History Month reminds me of the most famous speech that 
Sojourner Truth ever gave when she asked again and again, ``Ain't I a 
woman?''--asking when would it be her turn to have equal rights. With 
regard to health care, I would paraphrase Sojourner Truth and say, 
Ain't I a human being?
  It's not an understatement to say that the lack of affordable health 
coverage has contributed to keeping women in poverty, not to mention 
keeping too many women in poor health. Women are more likely to be in

[[Page H1638]]

low-wage jobs or to have to work several part-time jobs to make ends 
meet, which means they're less likely to have health coverage offered 
by their employer. Less than one-half of women have health insurance 
through their jobs. And because women are more likely to be below the 
poverty level in the first place and only earn 78 cents for every 
dollar that a man earns, they're more likely to be completely unable to 
afford health care in the first place.
  Isn't it about time we stood up and said, Ain't I a woman? Or, even: 
Ain't I a human being? Women are routinely denied care for having a 
preexisting condition, which could include being a potential, former, 
or actual mother; which could include being a victim of domestic 
violence; which could include having a serious illness or an operation, 
like a Cesarian section.
  Health care reform here will provide women the care that they need; 
the economic security they need; prohibit plans from charging women 
more than men; ban the insurance practice of rejecting women with a 
preexisting condition; and include maternity services. Yes, we are 
women; and, yes, we are human beings.

                          ____________________