National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA) Supports Equal Access to Affordable Reproductive Health Care

WASHINGTON, D.C.—On July 8, Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA), Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), and Congresswoman Diana DeGette (D-CO) introduced the Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance (EACH Woman) Act to ensure health coverage for abortion for every woman however much she earns, however she is insured, or wherever she lives.

For the women and families who depend on federal health insurance programs, including low-income women, existing restrictions bar coverage for abortion in all but the narrowest circumstances. The EACH Woman Act would lift these barriers and also prevent state and local governments, as well as Congress, from interfering in private insurance plans who make the choice to provide abortion coverage.

The National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA) applauds our champions in Congress for standing up for this long-needed step forward for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) women and families. AANHPIs are among the fastest growing population of low-income Americans in the country, with 28.0% of all Hmong, 26.6% of all Burmese, and 17.5% of all NHPI women living in poverty. For the women in our community who are already struggling to make ends meet, bearing the heavy cost of paying for abortion care out-of-pocket would be devastating.

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The National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA), founded in 1996, is a coalition of 35 national Asian Pacific American organizations. Based in Washington D.C., NCAPA serves to represent the interests of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AA & NHPI) communities and to provide a national voice on policy issues and priorities.