OCR Celebrates Women’s History Month

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By: Melanie Fontes Rainer, Director for Office for Civil Rights (OCR)
Summary:
OCR commemorates the many contributions and achievements that millions of women have provided to our Country.

As we close Women’s History Month, we celebrate the many powerful women who have contributed to our Country, despite the barriers that may exist and the ones they had to overcome. This month has been especially meaningful as I’ve had strong women around me my whole life. I was raised by a single mother and looked up to my older sister as she trailblazed in her legal career in public interest. I am deeply grateful to the many female role models who opened a path for me and many others. As Vice President Kamala Harris says, “First but not the last” and I hope to do the same for the many women who will come after me.

At the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services’ (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR), we reflect on the work ahead of us to address discrimination and disparities and advance gender equity and equality in our country’s health and human services programs.

Women make up half of the U.S. population. From suffragists and abolitionists, to our first female Vice President, our country has experienced centuries of progress towards gender equality. Yet, challenges and inequalities persist:

  • Women continue to earn less than their male counterparts. While Equal Pay Day on March 12, 2024 marks how far into a subsequent year women, on average, must work to earn a man’s income from the previous year, pay disparities are more pronounced for Black women, women of color, and women with disabilities. Latinas, who face the largest wage gap, must work into December of the subsequent year to earn a non-Latino white man’s income.
  • The U.S. has the highest maternal mortality rate among high-income countries, though most are preventable. Black women and Native American women face higher risk of suffering from maternal deaths. Innovative actions to improve maternal health and birth outcomes for pregnant and postpartum women are necessary to eliminate these disparities. 
  • Transgender women report higher rates of violent victimization than cisgender women.

I join President Biden in his call issued in his Proclamation on Women’s History Month, 2024, “may we all continue working to build a world worthy of the dreams and goals of all women and girls.”

OCR enforces a range of federal privacy laws and antidiscrimination laws that protect patient privacy, including those who need access to care, women who are pregnant, women with disabilities, or women who identify as LGBTQI+.

As part of my office’s work on nondiscrimination and commitment to justice, some of OCR’s recent efforts include:

OCR is also a diverse workforce and I want to take a moment to recognize some of its women leaders:

  • Jenny Ma serves as OCR’s Principal Deputy Director.
  • Genevieve Kelly is serving as the Acting Chief of Staff.
  • Robinsue Frohboese is the Deputy Director of Strategic Planning.
  • The majority of OCR’s eight Regions nationwide are led by women (six):
    • Jamie Rahn Ballay, Regional Manager, Mid-Atlantic Region
    • Linda Colón, Regional Manager, Eastern & Caribbean Region
    • Andrea Oliver, Regional Manager, Rocky Mountain Region
    • Susan Rhodes, Regional Manager, New England Region
    • Marisa Smith, Regional Manager, Southwest Region
    • Barbara Stampul, Regional Manager, Southeast Region

I so appreciate the many contributions of the women that work at OCR to advance privacy and civil rights, and the many women across the country who work to make health care more accessible, affordable, and better for all. Their hard work every day inspires me to do more.

Melanie


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