Ellen R Shaffer, PhD, Center for Policy Analysis, 98 Seal Rock Drive, San Francisco, CA 94121, 415-933-6204, ershaffer@earthlink.net

In 2004, health reform is once again emerging as a key concern in both policy and political arenas. This presentation will provide an overview of both positive and negative developments in health reform during the year including state-based efforts in California and elsewhere, the Medicare prescription drug program, and the role and significance of health reform as an issue in the presidential election. It will specifically address the impact of these developments on women for whom health coverage and quality are always key issues. In the past, women have had some advantage in health care coverage as a result of hard-fought battles that established regulations which extended insurance coverage to pregnant women under certain income levels. In the current environment, however, as state budgets are being curtailed, women may be losing even this shaky advantage.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant (learner) in this session will be able to

(
• describe health reform efforts that have taken place during the previous year at both the federal and state level; (
• describe health reform proposals put forward by presidential candidates in 2004; (
• discuss the positive and negative effects of these health reform efforts and proposals on women's access to health care; (
• analyze how broader changes, such as the state of economy, have also affected access to health care

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.