PSI President Susan Dowd-Stone informs me that there will be a hearing on the Melanie Blocker Stokes Act on May 1st.
In addition, The MOTHER's Act is scheduled to be reintroduced in the Senate soon. Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME) has now signed on as the lead Republican Co-Sponsor, which was a very important step. If you have not yet written or called your Senators and local Congressman, or even if you already have, call and write them now and urge others who care to do so as well. For more information on these bills and how to reach your state's legislators, click here.
If you are a Republican, it is even more important to reach out, as they have lagged behind in supporting these bills. I reached out to Republican Senators Saxby Chambliss and Jonny Isakson in Georgia with the following letter:
Please support the MOTHER'S Act, which has now been co-sponsored by Senator Olympia Snowe (R-Me). As a Republican and a past sufferer of postpartum depression, for the life of me I can't understand why more Republicans don't get on board with this issue. You should understand the importance of healthy moms in the first year of their children's lives and thereafter. Please, PLEASE support this legislation. Thousands of women in Georgia each year suffer from postpartum mood disorders, and Georgia even has one of the top treatment/research facilities at the Emory Women's Mental Health Program. Georgia should be a leader in this effort!
