As an elected official, I have strived to be a leader in the fight to protect women's rights. In addition to preserving women's reproductive rights, I have fought cuts in family planning funding and supported the coverage of contraceptives in health insurance programs.
I believe we must address women's unique health needs and have consistently supported increased funding for medical research and the inclusion of diseases affecting women in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Department of Defense research programs.
I have successfully fought for maternal and child health care programs that have increased childhood immunizations and combated asthma in children. After meeting with a mom from Chicago whose six-year-old child died after eating contaminated hamburger, I worked to improve the safety of the nation's food supply and I recently led a successful fight against the Bush Administration's proposed end to Salmonella testing of ground beef served to children through the federal school lunch program.
I believe preventative care must be a key component of our nation's health care system. Therefore, I support Medicare coverage of preventive health programs, such as mammograms and pap smears, and fought for the establishment of standards for mammography facilities.
Furthermore, I supported the Family and Medical Leave Act and other measures to stop discriminatory practices against women. I will continue to fight for legislation deterring wage discrimination on the basis of sex.
I think the way a country treats women can be indicative of government-led oppression and abuse. In Afghanistan, for example, the Taliban stopped girls from attending school and women from working and forced women into hiding behind their burqas. I believe strongly that empowering and upgrading the role of women in developing countries is key to fighting the AIDS epidemic, lowering birth rates and raising economic growth. I supported increased funding and a higher-profile role for the Office of Women in Development at the U.S. Agency for International Development and will continue to push for a greater focus on education, health, microcredit and economic empowerment programs for women in US development aid efforts.
I also supported the McGovern-Dole international school feeding program, which I hope will result in more girls going to school in developing countries. I have strongly supported microcredit programs, which primarily benefit women, as a method of economic empowerment in countries where women often are forced to be dependent on men for economic support. Building the role of women in developing countries is a key component to supporting democracy throughout the world.
