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December 29, 2015
LAST WEEK’S HEALTH NEWS ON TUESDAY
Questions? Contact Diana Christian at DChristian@CHNNYC.org or 212.545.2410
In this issue:
New York City
 NYC anti-discrimination
NYC issued new discrimination protections
for transgender individuals: Last week, the
New York City Commission on Human Rights
 NYS unlimited healthcare
(HRC) released new enforcement guidelines
enrollment for pregnant women
intended to protect gender non-conforming and
 Federal revision of ban on blood
transgender New Yorkers from discrimination.
donations for gay men
This is an additional set of protections building
on Governor Cuomo’s executive action to add
“transgender” to the classes protected under
New York (State) Human Rights Law. The recently issued city protections provide
additional specificity as to what designates discrimination based on gender, and can
impose fines up to $250,000 if employers, landlords, or business owners engage in
discriminatory behaviors based on “willful or malicious conduct.”
protections for transgender
individuals

Discriminatory behavior: Under the new provisions, it is unlawful for an
employer to refuse to hire or promote individuals who identify as transgender, and
illegal to fire or give different work assignments or benefits based on gender.
Additionally, business cannot enforce rules about dress codes, uniforms, or
grooming standards based on sex or gender. For example, restaurants can no
longer require ties for only males in restaurants. More broadly, the law states it is
illegal to treat someone “less well than others” based on their gender identity or
expression.
The new provisions are some of the strongest guidelines in the nation. New York City’s
Human Rights Commissioner, Carmelyn P. Malalis, stated that, “Far too often,
transgender and gender non-conforming individuals suffer discrimination, harassment
and violence on a scale many cannot imagine. New York City does not and will not
tolerate discrimination on the basis of gender identity or gender expression.”
New York State
Gov. Cuomo signed a bill eliminating time limits on healthcare enrollment for
pregnant women: Last Tuesday, Governor Cuomo signed a bill which allows
pregnant women to enroll in the state’s health insurance exchange, New York State of
Health, outside of the enrollment window. The legislation works through classifying
pregnancy as a “qualifying event,” permitted special or extended enrollment periods on
the health exchange marketplace. Other qualifying events include having a child,
marriage, divorce, losing employment, and attaining citizenship. New York is the first
state in the nation to classify pregnancy as a qualifying event.
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When can individuals begin applying: The legislation takes effect January 1 st
2016, and women will become eligible following a blood test to confirm pregnancy.
Coverage for pregnant women will be retroactive in order to cover all immediate
costs, such as the initial blood testing. Click here to apply.
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Why did New York make this change? In March of this year, NYC
Comptroller Scott Stringer released a report, “Time to deliver: Pregnancy and the
Affordable Care Act,” which found that providing health benefits for pregnant
women and newborns will likely lead to long-term cost savings for the state’s
healthcare system. The report stated that babies born to mothers in the U.S. who
received no prenatal care are three times more likely to be born at low birth weight
than those whose mothers received prenatal care.
The trade association representing insurers, the New York Health Plan Association,
opposed the legislation. It argued that it creates a disincentive for healthy women to
enroll and increases the sickly pool of insurance recipients. The U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
refused to include pregnancy as a qualifying event on the
national level.
December 29, 2015
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Federal
The FDA revised the blood-donor ban for gay and bisexual men: The federal
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced this past Monday that is it no longer
enforcing the lifetime ban on blood donations for gay and bisexual men. However, in
order to donate, the individual cannot have had sexual contact with another man for
at least one year. This will be enforced through an FDA crafted questionnaire given
to all men before donation, asking them if they have had sex with another man in the
last 12 months. Beginning in 1983, the FDA banned all gay and bisexual men from
being able to donate blood. The ban was intended to protect individuals receiving
blood transfusions from the potential of contracting HIV/AIDS. The updated one year
ban matches policies in other countries, including Australia, Japan, New Zealand and
the U.K. The new rules are intended to increase US blood bank supply by 2 to 4
percent, and make up to 2 million additional individuals eligible to donate.
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FDA concern with eliminating the ban: All blood donations are screened
for HIV, but there is approximately a 10 day window between an initial infection
and when the virus can be detected. If someone donates during that time, their
blood donation could infect the recipient of the blood supply. The odds of
infection are very low, however, as the American Red Cross estimates the risk of
getting an HIV-positive blood donation is 1 in 1.5 million for all U.S. patients.
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Why should you donate? According to the World Health Organization
(WHO), donating blood saves lives and improves health. Blood transfusion is
most commonly used for women with complications in pregnancy, children with
severe anemia, people with severe trauma accidents, surgical and cancer
patients, and transfusions for people with chronic blood conditions. There is a
constant need for blood because it can only be stored for a limited period of
time. Click here to locate a blood donation site.
There has been criticism from activists, including the Human Rights Campaign, the
Gay Men’s Health Crisis, and the National Gay Blood Drive, who feel the one year
ban continues to stigmatize gay man. Dr. Peter Marks of the FDA said the change is
“backed by sound scientific evidence and will continue to protect our blood supply.”
This conclusion was reached after FDA research concluded that completely
eliminating all restrictions would increase the transmission of HIV through blood
supply by 400 percent.
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Who we are
Community Healthcare Network (CHN) is a not-for profit
network of 13 health centers , including a school based
health center and a medical mobile van. We offer free
and low cost quality primary care to 85,000 New Yorkers annually in underserved communities in the Bronx,
Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens. As a certified Patient
-Centered Medical Home, we offer patients a specialized care team, including primary care physicians, nurses, nutritionists, dentists, gynecologists, mental health
therapists, social workers, and health educators. We
have been in our communities for over 30 years.