MEDIA ADVISORY – Lawmakers, Women’s Health Organizations To Hold News Conference Urging Governor To Act On Women’s Health Funding

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senators Loretta Weinberg and Joseph Vitale which would reverse nearly $7.5 million in cuts in the Governor’s proposed FY 2011 Budget for women’s health and family planning services, and would require the State to apply to the federal government for a Medicaid expansion to make family planning services available to more low-income individuals was approved by the Senate today by a vote of 30-10. The Senate needs 27 votes in the affirmative in order to override a Governor’s veto.

“The people of New Jersey have a right to question whether the Governor’s decisions in the FY 2011 Budget are about fiscal realities or political ideology,” said Senator Weinberg, D-Bergen, and Chair of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee. “Governor Christie likes to point out that he was elected to represent all the people – including the thousands of women who depend on affordable, accessible health care through family planning clinics. Hopefully, he will recognize the impact of his cuts to family planning and women’s health services, and reverse course on proposed cuts which will put women at risk.”

TRENTON – State Senator Loretta Weinberg, D-Bergen, the Chair of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee and sponsor of S-2139, legislation restoring $7.5 million in funds which were cut from the FY 2011 State Budget for women’s health and family planning programs, issued the following statement today after the Governor vetoed the bill:

“It’s a sad day when the Governor of the State of New Jersey decides to put political ideology ahead of the health and safety of women and men across the Garden State.

“The Governor has perpetuated a myth that this decision has to do with budget choices.

TRENTON – Sen. Loretta Weinberg, Assemblywoman Linda Stender, representatives of women’s health organizations and legislators who support access to women’s health programs called on Gov. Chris Christie Thursday to act on legislation to restore $7.5 million in cuts for women’s health programs in the recently enacted FY 2011 state budget.

“Today, we’re calling on Gov. Christie to do the right thing and restore funding for women’s health programs,” said Weinberg (D-Bergen), chair of the Senate Health Committee. “The bill which passed both legislative houses is budget neutral, and preserves our commitment to provide access to basic health care for women who have nowhere else to turn. We hope that the governor can put women’s health and safety ahead of political ideology, but we stand ready to work to overturn his veto, just in case.”

TRENTON – At a news conference at the Statehouse today, senators who supported S-2139 – legislation which would restore $7.5 million in funding cut from the FY 2011 Budget for women’s health and family planning services – once again urged the Governor to act on the legislation and stand up for access to basic health care for women in New Jersey.

“This is a matter of standing up for life-saving medical care for women who have no where else to turn,” said Senator Loretta Weinberg, D-Bergen, the prime sponsor of the bill. “In the State Senate, we put aside party affiliation and approved the bill with a bipartisan, veto-proof majority, because we recognize that there are some things more important than political ideology. We hope the Governor can put conservative philosophy aside and support this measure.”

TRENTON –State Senator Loretta Weinberg, one of the prime sponsors of legislation which would restore $7.5 million in funding for women’s health and family planning programs in New Jersey, today filed three Open Public Records Act (OPRA) requests with the State Treasurer to find out more information regarding the Administration’s fiscal objections to the budget-neutral funding source identified in her bill.

“From Day One, the Christie Administration has been less than forthcoming with regard to their objections on vital women’s health funding,” said Senator Weinberg, D-Bergen. “If they have a concern about the budget source identified by nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services staff as surplus funds, then they should be working Assemblywoman (Linda) Stender and me in a bipartisan fashion to replace that funding with a more workable solution. Instead, all we’ve gotten from the Administration is vague budgetary concerns which allude to actuarial information and budgetary projections which were never shared with anyone on our side of the aisle in the Legislature.

TRENTON – Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee Chairwoman Loretta Weinberg, the sponsor of legislation to restore – through surplus funds in the State Employee Prescription drug program – $7.5 million in funding which was cut from the FY 2011 State Budget for women’s health and family planning services, issued the following statement today regarding the Committee’s hearing on the bill. The measure, S-2139, was approved by a bipartisan, veto-proof majority in the Senate at the end of June:

“Today, we wanted to give the Administration an opportunity to highlight alternate plans or discuss concerns about the funding source we identified for women’s health programs. Unfortunately, our request for information was met with deafening silence.

(TRENTON) – After Senate Republicans joined Governor Christie in turning their backs on the women of New Jersey, Democratic legislators vowed to continue the fight to protect access to women’s healthcare.

At a news conference following the veto override vote in the Senate – which failed due to a lack of Republican support – Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney joined Senator Loretta Weinberg, Assemblywoman Linda Stender, and other women’s health advocates in the Legislature to announce new legislation intended to restore a portion of the funding cut from women’s health and family planning programs in New Jersey and require the state to apply for federal matching dollars for Medicaid-eligible health care consumers.

“The sponsors of this bill have worked tirelessly to make sure that women have access to basic health services, including breast exams, cancer screenings, pre- and post-natal care and gynecological exams,” said Senate President Sweeney (D-Gloucester). “They’ve identified budget-neutral funding and they’ve found federal matching grants so that our investment brings back $9 for every $1 we put into the system. We’re disappointed with the outcome of today’s veto override, but we’re hopeful that the Governor and Republican Legislators can put aside partisan blinders and help Democrats quickly enact women’s health care funding, version 2.0, into law.”

TRENTON – Senator Loretta Weinberg and members of the State Senate who voted for S-2139, legislation to restore $7.5 million in funding for women’s health and family planning services which was cut from the FY 2011 State Budget, will hold a news conference tomorrow, Thursday, July 8, to urge Governor Christie to act on the bill.

“It’s been 10 days since the Legislature sent S-2139 to the Governor’s Desk for his consideration, and it’s been 8 days since the start of the new fiscal year, when funding for valuable women’s health programs was reduced to zero,” said Senator Weinberg, D-Bergen, and chair of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee. “It’s time that we hear from our State’s chief executive on his plans on S-2139. We’re urging the Governor to either sign the bill soon, so women can get access to basic health care, or veto it soon, so we can take the next step in working to restore these funds.”

TRENTON, NJ – Sen. Loretta Weinberg and Assemblywoman Linda Stender, the leading champions for women’s health in the Legislature, on Tuesday called on their Republican colleagues in both houses to join with Democrats in supporting a critical vote to override Gov. Christie’s recent veto of a bill providing $7.5 million for 59 women’s health and family planning centers throughout the state.

“There is no longer the time or room for legislators who support this bill in theory, but fear political consequences, to sit back and hope someone else will shepherd this funding through,” said Weinberg (D-Bergen), chair of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee and a prime sponsor of the legislation. “We need to corral every vote possible to ensure that the health of low income women throughout this state is not a casualty of political ideologies.”

TRENTON – Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney and Assembly Speaker Sheila Y. Oliver today announced that the Legislature will vote next month to override the Governor’s veto of legislation that would fund women’s health clinics across the state.

Senate President Sweeney has set the Senate’s override vote for September 20. Under legislative rules, the first override vote must take place in the house in which a vetoed bill originated.

Speaker Oliver said if the Senate vote is successful, the Assembly will vote on Sept 30.

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senators Loretta Weinberg and Joseph Vitale which would reverse nearly $7.5 million in cuts in the Governor’s proposed FY 2011 Budget for women’s health and family planning services, and would require the State to apply to the federal government for a Medicaid expansion to make family planning services available to more low-income individuals was approved by the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee today by a vote of 8-3, with two abstentions.

“It is absolutely unconscionable that Governor Christie would consider balancing his budget by putting women’s health at risk,” said Senator Weinberg, D-Bergen, and Chair of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee. “He’s putting conservative values and principles ahead of the needs of women on limited incomes, who have nowhere else to turn for the most basic reproductive health services. New Jersey’s women deserve better than to be in the crosshairs of a conservative governor looking to use the budget process to enforce his own political ideology.”

TRENTON, NJ – Senator Loretta Weinberg and Assemblywoman Linda Stender, the leading advocates for the restoration of $7.5 million in funding from the FY 2011 State Budget for women’s health and family planning programs in New Jersey, will hold a news conference tomorrow, Tuesday, August 3, to officially kick off the campaign to encourage the Legislature to override the Governor’s veto of their bill to reinstate the funds.

“The Legislature approved the restoration bill once and sent it to the Governor to do the right thing, but now it’s back on our shoulders to maintain access to women’s health care,” said Senator Weinberg, D-Bergen. “We’re going to be reaching out to all of our legislative colleagues to convince them that funding for women’s health and family planning programs is too important to let lapse.”

TRENTON, NJ – Senator Loretta Weinberg and Assemblywoman Linda Stender, the leading advocates for the restoration of women’s health funding in the State Legislature, said today that the reports of the death of the override attempt of the Governor’s veto for women’s health funding have been exaggerated. They added that they will continue reaching out to legislative colleagues on both sides of the political aisle to urge them to support the legislative override.

“I think it’s premature to sound the death knell on women’s health funding, particularly when we just kicked off the campaign to encourage support for an override yesterday,” said Senator Weinberg, D-Bergen. “When our bill, S-2139, was approved by the Legislature in June, it received bipartisan support in the Senate. We will continue to appeal to lawmakers of good conscience on both sides of the political divide, because failure on this override would be a catastrophe of epic proportions for health care in New Jersey.”