Health Reform and Victims of Domestic Violence

As I've written about previously (click here), the Family Violence Prevention Fund has published a summary of health reform law implications regarding domestic, sexual and dating violence.  Here's a very high level summary:

• Beginning in January of 2014, the new law prevents insurers (who receive Federal assistance) from denying coverage for preexisting conditions, including being a survivor of domestic violence.  Previously, only 22 states had enacted similar requirements.
• 48 percent of women who receive maternal, infant and early child related home health services report incidents of domestic violence.  Very few programs have emerged nationally to address this problem.  The new law provides $1.5B over five years for home visitation model development to improve mother and baby health and domestic violence is specifically culled out as an area of concern.
• From 2010 through 2014, states will receive Federal funds directed toward reducing pregnancy rates for youths between the ages of 10 and 19 (where there is a high incidence of domestic violence).

There are many additional components to the summary, available in full here.

(Image from uweekly.com.)