Public Advocate's Corner

A Victory for Accessing Low-Cost Contraceptives

A new provision that will make birth control more affordable for college-aged and low-income women was included in the fiscal year 2009 omnibus spending bill President Obama signed into law last week.

The provision will restore an exemption from Medicaid pricing that allows young women (at college health clinics, Planned Parenthood offices, and other family-planning centers) to access low-priced contraceptives. The price break was originally eliminated in 2005 through the Deficit Reduction Act.

In December of 2007, Public Advocate Gotbaum called on members of the House to co-sponsor legislation that would allow college students and low-income women to have access to affordable contraceptives. At that time, she sent letters to all the NYC House representatives, stating that "Congress should take steps to improve access to affordable birth control to support efforts to encourage young people to be responsible for their reproductive health." Read the Full Letter to NYC Reps re Birth Control [pfd].

Happy Saint Patrick's Day

Yesterday, Betsy Gotbaum spoke at a press conference hosted by NY State Comptroller DiNapoli about the state Common Retirement Fund investment in Northern Ireland.

The Public Advocate visited Belfast last May, and met with leaders last winter, after the NYC Pension funds announced an unprecedented investment in Northern Ireland. 

Public Advocate Gotbaum said, "I was very happy to see the immediate statements released by First Minister Peter Robinson and First Deputy Minister Martin McGuiness, following the recent violence in Northern Ireland. After reading the unified denouncement of violence and the call for continued peace I was very proud to say I know them both.

Because of this, I think there is no better time to reaffirm our commitment to investing in Northern Ireland and support peace there. Comptroller DiNapoli's announcement today sends a clear message to any groups that might try to derail this hard-earned peace: Promoting peace in Northern Ireland is not only the right thing to do, but it results in economic benefits for everyone, stabilizes the nation, and provides an excellent investment environment.  Northern Ireland will never again return to the era of violence and economic despair for its residents.

Pictured: Betsy Gotbaum in Northern Ireland last year.

Betsy in Brooklyn: Make the Road by Walking

 

This Saturday, Betsy Gotbaum attended Make the Road by Walking's Annual Memeber Assembly at Bushwick High school in Brooklyn. Make the Road New York fights on behalf of New York's low-income and immigrant communities. In 2008, Make the Road helped low-wage New Yorkers receive over $6.5 million of dollars in unpaid benefits and wages. Read the Public Advocate's remarks below.

Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum said, "As a member of the Coalition for Asthma-Free Homes, Make the Road has been an outstanding partner in our efforts to draft and pass a bill I co-sponsored with Council Member Rosie Mendez in 2006 to fight toxic mold and pests in NYC apartments. Make the Road has worked recently with my office on two other important bills.

Accessing Services: How to Enroll Your Child in Pre-Kindergarten Classes

If you're the parent of a 4-year-old child (or a 3-year-old who will turn four before December 31), now is the time to apply for admission to a city Pre-Kindergarten (Pre-K) program.

As described by the city Department of Education (DOE), Pre-K programs "provide a nurturing environment where children’s natural curiosity is used as a springboard to learn skills that are necessary for success in school. In Pre-Kindergarten, children learn how to share, take turns and work in groups. They also develop skills that form the foundation for reading, writing and mathematics."

While the application process for parents applying for Pre-K was very problematic last year, the program itself is free to parents and offers half-day, morning or afternoon, for two hours and 30 minutes, or full-day, for six hours and 20 minutes (although full-day slots are very competitive).

On the Department of Education website you can find important information about enrolling your child in Pre-K.

According to the DOE, children who live in NYC and have their fourth birthday between January 1 and December 31, 2009 are eligible to take part in city Pre-K programs. Parents/guardians of applicants must be New York City residents.

How to Apply? Parents and guardians may apply using an online directory and an online application.  If you're a first-time online applicant, however, you need to create a free account. In addition to English, you may apply in Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Haitian Creole, Korean, Russian, Spanish and Urdu. Parents and guardians can also apply in person at a Community-based Organization (CBO) that runs a Pre-K program (full list here in pdf).

Important Dates for Pre-K Applications

• Friday, March 6:  Application period begins.
• Friday, April 3:  Application period ends.
• Week of May 18: Families are offered assignments.
• May 18-May 29:  Families pre-register at schools.

Other information: Siblings of children who already attend the school where a Pre-K program is located are given first preference for admission to that Pre-K program. A sibling may be a brother or sister, half-brother, half-sister, stepbrother, stepsister, foster brother or foster sister who lives in the same household as the applicant. Other Pre-K admissions priorities are online.  

DOE advises that there is no guarantee that a child will be placed in a Pre-K program. If a child is placed in Pre-K, DOE further cautions that a child will not automatically move from Pre-K to kindergarten: All Pre-K students must apply for admission to a kindergarten. Additionally, placement in a Pre-K program in a given school is no guarantee that the child will be placed in kindergarten in the same school.

If you have trouble with the application process or need more information, please call my office at 212-669-7250.

Honoring Women

March is Women's History Month, and once again I honor the often-unsung women who helped build this nation and this city. Speaking as the first female Public Advocate for the City of New York, and also as the only woman currently holding citywide office, I am inspired each day by the women working around me in and out of government.

I also join First Lady Michelle Obama in honoring and thanking women -- in my case, New York women in particular -- for their service in the U.S. military.

Clearly, women have come a long way since the women's rights movement emerged in the 1960s, the era when I first entered public service. Only a few women in those years had blazed trails into such fields as government, business, law, and medicine. Today, of course, women are in positions of authority in virtually all spheres of influence.

To be sure, women still have a long way to go. But the culture is changing, and the road ahead appears somewhat smoother. And I'm truly gratified that the vital role of women in American and New York City history is better understood, and celebrated.

Reforming School Governance; Expanding Sex Education

Today, I spoke at two rallies about causes that are deeply important to me. At the New York Immigration Coalition's Annual City Advocacy Day, I called for reforming school governance in New York City, which concentrates too much power in the hands of the Mayor and Chancellor.

As I recently testified, our system needs more checks and balances, transparency, and public participation. We need to keep the pressure on Albany to make sure lawmakers enact these changes.

Later, I spoke at the GMHC's National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. According to the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, 1 in 3 New Yorkers living with HIV is a woman; and 94% of new HIV infections in teenage girls in New York City are among Blacks and Hispanics.

In 2007, I sent a letter to Chancellor Klein, asking him to do more to encourage comprehensive sex education in city high schools. We have to make sure our teenage girls (and boys) have the knowledge to make informed, healthy decisions--and to stop the spread of HIV and other dangerous STD's.

Stem Cell Research

Today, President Obama issued an executive order that will allow research on hundreds of stem cell lines, extracted from embryos left over from fertility treatments that would have otherwise been discarded.

Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum said, "I congratulate President Obama on his forward-thinking approach to stem cell research. Today's executive order is not only a sign of support for human embryonic stem cell research, but it comes at a time when researchers and scientists can actually capitalize on funds made available by the economic recovery package. While we have a long way to go to overturn old restrictions to stem cell research, the new administration is clearly committed to supporting advanced biological research for medical purposes and working to find cures for terminal illness."

Fighting for Food Stamp Benefits

On Saturday, Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum stood with elected officials and advocates to call on Governor Paterson to accept a statewide provision in the federal recovery bill that would extend Food Stamp benefits for able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWDs) through September 30, 2010. Read more about this provision.

New York City had previously been eligible for a waiver to extend the time limits, and despite the urging of the Public Advocate and other elected officials and hunger advocates, Mayor Bloomberg has never accepted the ABAWD waiver.

Today, Betsy blogs on the Huffington Post about the need for the Mayor to accept this provision without conditions.

What do you think? Post your thoughts on the Mayor's actions below.

Gotbaum Promotes Russian Guide for Immigrants in Brighton Beach

Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum today visited the Shorefront YM-YWHA of Brighton-Manhattan Beach to promote her comprehensive Guide to Public Benefits for Immigrants in New York City in Russian.

The free guide provides valuable information on federal, state and city benefits and is the first of its kind to specifically examine immigration status as part of benefit eligibility. The Public Advocate first released the guide in November 2008 in six languages, including English, Russian, Chinese, Spanish, Korean and Bengali.

She was joined today by William Rapfogel, Executive Director and CEO of the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty, Assemblyman Steven Cymbrowitz, Councilmember Michael Nelson, Susan Fox, Executive Director of the Shorefront YM-YWHA of Brighton-Manhattan Beach, Office of the Brooklyn Borough President, and the Jewish Community Relations Council. Read more. 

[Photo credit: Gia Storms]

Accessing Services: How to Set Up a Health Care Proxy

Everyone should take proactive steps to plan for health care needs. One way to make sure that your health care wishes are carried out, whatever your future may hold, is to sign a Health Care Proxy form. A Health Care Proxy is a trusted friend or family member who will make health care decisions for you in the case that you can't do so yourself. For example, in the case of an accident that results in the loss of consciousness, hospitals, doctors and other health care workers are required to honor your proxy's decisions as if they were your own.

Assigning a Health Care Proxy

Information about the Health Care Proxy system is on the city website. The state also provides detailed online information in English and in Spanish as well, including answers to frequently asked questions about Health Care Proxies. Online, you'll find Health Care Proxy instructions and a printable form as well as related information about living wills and "Do Not Resuscitate" orders.

You can choose how much authority to give your proxy, and you may authorize all health decisions or only specific ones. For example, you may instruct your proxy to disallow such things as the use of feeding tubes or other life-sustaining treatment. And in your Health Care Proxy form, you may state your wishes regarding organ and tissue donation. 

Even if you have signed a Health Care Proxy form, you retain the right to make your own health care decisions so long as you are able. Treatment may not be initiated, stopped, or withheld if you object. In such cases, your proxy has no power to override your instructions.

More Information

• A Health Care Proxy form has the force of law, but you need not retain a lawyer to appoint a proxy and fill out the required authorization form.
• Two adults age 18 or over, other than the proxy, must witness your signature on the authorization form.  And your proxy must be age 18 or over.
• According to information on the state website relating to Health Care Proxies, '"Health care' means any treatment, service or procedure to diagnose or treat your physical or mental condition."
• Your doctors will decide when you are unable to make your own health care decisions. Then your proxy takes over.
• Before formally appointing your proxy, discuss your wishes with him or her. After the form is signed and witnessed, give him or her a copy.

Other details are online, including The Health Care Proxy Law:  A Guidebook for Health Care Professionals. The guidebook includes a proxy form and information about the law for patients and members of their families. If you feel you still need help, please call my office at 212-669-7250.