In-Person Absentee Voting Tomorrow in NOVA

Saturday, October 1st, 2016 

The following locations will be open for In-Person Absentee Voting tomorrow Saturday, October 1st, 9:00am until 5:00pm.

• Fairfax County Government Center, Conference Room 2/3, 12000 Government Center Parkway, Fairfax
• Providence Community Center, 3001Vaden Dr., Fairfax
• Franconia Government Center, 6121 Franconia Rd., Alexandria, 
• McLean Governmental Center, 1437 Balls Hill Rd., Community Room, McLean
• North County Governmental Center, 1801 Cameron Glen Dr., Community Rooms, Reston
• West Springfield Governmental Center, 6140 Rolling Rd., Springfield
• Mason Governmental Center, 6507 Columbia Pike, Annandale
• Mount Vernon Governmental Center, 2511 Parkers Lane, Alexandria
• Sully Governmental Center, 4900 Stonecroft Blvd., Chantilly 
• Lorton Library, 9520 Richmond Hwy., Lorton 

For more information on Absentee Voting, visit www.elections.virginia.gov
 

If you can’t attend, donate to Virginia NOW.

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Virginia NOW For Hillary,

Katie Regan
Virginia NOW
webeditor@vanow.org

Our Endorsements, 2015

 

Once every four years, the entire General Assembly is elected. This is the year and the election is Tuesday, November 3.  All 100 delegates and all 40 state senators will be elected.  While many current delegates and senators are unopposed because of our gerrymandered districts, we still have opportunities to elect excellent newcomers and retain outstanding incumbents.

 We know we can count on the following candidates to stand up for women and the many attacks against her civil liberties during legislative sessions.

What can you do to get them elected?  Pick a candidate – from your district (click here to find your district and current legislators) or another district – and get involved.  Go to the candidate’s office and meet him/her, speak to voters on behalf of the candidate, make phone calls, work in the candidate’s office, contribute whatever you can (directly to candidates or to the VA NOW Political Action Committee), talk to your friends and neighbors.  That’s how we win.

 

Some races will be decided by a few votes.  You must be registered to vote (and if you’ve moved since the last election, you have to renew your registration). The last day to register for this election is October 13. Learn more at: elections.virginia.gov/registration/how-to-register

 

Note:  Virginia NOW endorses incumbents with whom we have worked; we base endorsements on their legislative record on Virginia NOW’s issues.  We endorse candidates who are not incumbents based on their positions with these issues:

• Reproductive freedom, choice, and justice
• Health care, health insurance, & retirement insurance
  •  Protect Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare, Affordable Healthcare (a.k.a. Obamacare)
  •  The right for equal coverage for the same cost
  •  Protect medical privacy in a digital age
• The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)
• End violence against women – in the home, on the street, on campus, EVERYWHERE!
  •  Enforcement of anti-human trafficking laws
  •  Test ALL rape kits
• Employee rights and workplace fairness
  •  Paid sick days, family leave, etc.
• Update and improve the child support system and collection
• Ensure the continued right of voting be available for all registered citizens on election day
• Implement non-partisan redistricting
• A budget supportive of under-served population – women, children, persons with mental illness, lower-income persons and families and others
  •  Increase minimum wage
• Decriminalize/legalize sex work in Virginia
• LGBTQ Rights
• Protect the environment
• End NSA, government, internet, and corporate surveillance!

 

VA NOW – Endorsed Candidates for House of Delegates

* = incumbent

Joshua King, 2nd District – Prince William and Stafford counties
Sam Rasoul*, 11th District – Roanoke City
Laurie Buchwald, 12th District – Montgomery, Giles, and Pulaski Counties; Radford
Don Shaw, 13th District – Prince William County, Manassas Park City
Susan Hippen, 21st District – Virginia Beach City, Chesapeake City
Ellen Arthur, 24th District – Rockbridge, Amherst, August, Bath counties; Lexington City
Angela Lynn, 25th District – Augusta, Albemarle, Rockingham counties
Kandy Hilliard, 28th District – Stafford County, Fredericksburg City
Sara Townsend, 31st District – Fauquier and Prince William counties
Elizabeth Miller, 32nd District – Loudoun County
Kathleen Murphy*, 34th District – Loudoun and Fairfax counties
Kaye Kory*, 38th District – Fairfax County
Vivian Watts*, 39th District – Fairfax County
Eileen Filler-Corn*, 41st District – Fairfax County
Joana Garcia, 42nd district – Fairfax County
Mark Sickles*, 43rd District – Fairfax County
Charniele Herring*, 46th District – Alexandria City
Patrick Hope*, 47th District – Arlington County
Alfonso Lopez*, 49th District – Arlington and Fairfax counties
Toni Radler, 55th District – Hanover, Caroline, Spotsylvania counties
David Toscano*, 57th District – Charlottesville City, Albemarle County
Lashrecse Aird, 63rd District – Petersburg and Hopewell cities; Dinwiddie, Chesterfield, Prince George counties
Betsy Carr*, 69th District – Richmond City, Chesterfield County
Delores McQuinn*, 70th District – Henrico and Chesterfield cities, Richmond City
Jennifer McClellan*, 71st District – Richmond City, Henrico County
Roslyn Tyler*, 75th District – Brunswick, Southampton, Greensville, Dinwiddie, Sussex, Lunenberg, Isle of Wight, Surry counties; Emporia and Franklin cities
Lionel Spruill*, 77th District – Chesapeake and Suffolk cities
Jennifer Boysko, 86th District – Fairfax and Loudoun counties
John Bell, 87th District – Loudoun and Prince William counties
Daun Hester*, 89th District – Norfolk City
Jeion Ward*, 92nd District – Hampton City
Shelly Simonds, 94th District – Newport News City

 

VA NOW-Endorsed Candidates for Virginia State Senate

* = incumbent
Mamie Locke*, 2nd District – Hampton, Newport News, Portsmouth cities; York County

Donald McEachin*, 9th District – Henrico, Hanover, Charles City counties; Richmond
Deborah Repp, 12th District – Henrico and Hanover counties
Jill McCabe, 13th District – Loudoun and Prince William counties
Rosalyn Dance*, 16th District – Chesterfield, Prince George, Dinwiddie counties; Richmond, Petersburg, Hopewell cities
Louise Lucas*, 18th District – Portsmouth, Suffolk, Chesapeake, Emporia, Franklin cities; Southampton, Sussex, Isle of Wight, Greensville, Surry, Brunswick counties
Kim Adkins, 20th District – Henry, Halifax, Patrick, Pittsylvania, Carroll, Franklin counties; Danville, Martinsville, Galax cities
April Moore, 26th District – Shenandoah, Rockingham, Warren, Page, Rappahannock counties; Harrisonburg City
Jeremy McPike, 29th District – Prince William County, Manassas City, Manassas Park City
Adam Ebbin*, 30th District – Alexandria City, Fairfax and Arlington counties
Barbara Favola*, 31st District – Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun counties
Janet Howell*, 32nd District – Fairfax and Arlington counties
Jennifer Wexton*, 33rd District – Loudoun and Fairfax counties
Scott Surovell, 36th District – Prince William, Fairfax, Stafford counties
George Barker*, 39th District – Fairfax and Prince William counties; Alexandria city

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For equality,

Marj Signer
VA NOW PAC Co-Chair

We’re Not Finished With the Women’s Liberation Movement

Yes!  We’re making civil liberties victories left and right!

However, without the Equal Rights Amendment, these same civil rights will reappear in new bills in future legislative sessions, requiring another round of battles.

The ERA would place women into the constitution giving them full equality and citizenship.  Once ratified, there will be no necessity for all these individual civil rights battles.

 

The ERA is for every citizen.  Whether you’re a tea-party woman or a feminist man, the ERA will benefit you. 

 

Males Also Benefit From An ERA Ratification
by Virginia NOW’s President, Diana Egozcue

 

 ERA Factsheet

ERA Logo by Paradise Kendra

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Let’s Ratify!

Paradise
Virginia NOW
Communications VP/Webmistress

Virginia NOW ENDORSED Candidates 2015

Virginia NOW rarely endorses candidates in a primary election but this year is different. There are two outstanding women running for the General Assembly who deserve your support – and they need it now:

Julie Jakopic

  Delegate, 45th Delegate District
(Alexandria and part of Arlington)

 

Emily Francis
State Senate, 10th Senate District
(portions of Richmond and Chesterfield County along with Powhatan County)

 

Only 13% of the Virginia legislature is comprised of pro-choice women. No wonder the mandatory ultrasound bill sailed through and the ERA gets killed in committee. We need a legislature that represents US – more pro-choice, pro-ERA, pro-equality women.

Both Jakopic and Francis face well-funded opponents in their Democratic primaries. Elections are June 9th – so delaying is not an option. Go to their websites to learn why they deserve your support: www.juliefordelegate.com and www.francisforsenate.com. And then make a contribution to the VA NOW Political Action Committee and ask your friends to do the same.

 

Julie Jakopic

Julie Jakopic works tirelessly for women’s rights, mental health reform, quality education, and economic opportunity. She’s a leader with a clear vision who gets things done. She built a business. She’s led commissions and non-profit boards fighting for early childhood education, economic opportunity, social services, and housing. She’s forged coalitions by focusing on real needs. She has been endorsed by Delegate Rob Krupicka, the incumbent.

Emily Francis

Emily Francis has built her career fighting for what’s right. As one of Virginia’s leading conservationists, she worked with scientists to devise plans to protect the Chesapeake Bay and with non-profit organizations to preserve our treasured landscapes, strengthen public health standards and protect consumers’ rights. The daughter of a nurse, she is firmly committed to protecting women’s access to reproductive health care and has earned the endorsement of Emily’s List.

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Announcing the Women’s Equality Coalition — 2015

Virginia NOW is proud and excited to be a founding member of the Virginia Women’s Equality Coalition. This group of some of Virginia’s most active and powerful advocacy organizations will ask our members to raise your voices, and get your fingers moving to support legislation essential to all women and communities in the Commonwealth. Here’s what we’ll be working on:

The Virginia Women’s Equality Agenda

1. Promoting women’s health and safety by repealing Virginia’s mandatory ultrasound law, closing the Medicaid coverage gap, and ensuring that survivors of domestic violence are not driven into poverty.
2. Advancing women’s economic opportunity by making sure women receive equal pay for equal work, a living wage to support their families, and paid sick days so they can care for themselves and their children.
3. Protecting democratic participation by ensuring that Virginia women can cast their votes without unequal or undue barriers.

Are you ready to stand with us? Become a citizen co-sponsor of the 2015 Virginia Women’s Equality Agenda now!

Legislation to Achieve this Agenda

Women’s Health and Safety

• Repeal the mandatory ultrasound statute (SB733 and HB1524)
  Health care decisions should be between a woman, her family, her doctor, her faith — or simply her own conscience — NOT politicians. Politicians
  should not interfere in private medical decisions.
• Close the coverage gap (Included in Governor McAuliffe’s proposed amendments)
  For millions of women, Medicaid makes the difference between access to cancer screenings and birth control or going
  without. If Virginia fails to expand Medicaid, 112,642 women of reproductive age will fall into the coverage gap.
• Protect birth control access (Not yet filed)
  The vast majority of women use birth control during their lifetime but more than a third has struggled to afford it. No
  one’s boss should be able to dictate her health care decisions.
• Provide unemployment benefits for victims of domestic violence who are forced to leave their job (HB1430)
  Victims of domestic violence should have to suffer again from losing economic security.

Economic Opportunity

• Ensure equal pay (SB772)
  Women deserve to be paid fairly. It’s that simple. Ensuring women are compensated fairly is a vital step in building a
  Virginia that works for everyone.
• Expand access to paid sick days (Not yet filed)
  Everybody gets sick, but not everybody can afford to take time off to get better or care for a sick kid. Over one million
  Virginia workers don’t have a paid sick day. That means when they or a family member get sick, they have to choose
  between jeopardizing public health or risking their family’s economic security.
• Raise the minimum wage (SB681)
  Women who work hard and play by the rules should be able to afford to live with dignity and raise a family. Six in 10 low
  wage workers are women and 300,000 kids live in a household that would see a income increase from raising the wage.
• Ratify the Equal Rights Amendment (HJ495 and SJ216)
  Sex discrimination should get the highest level of strict judicial scrutiny, just as race discrimination does, but it currently
  receives only a heightened level of intermediate scrutiny. Only a federal ERA can provide the highest and broadest level of legal protection against sex discrimination. (See also Virginia ERA Network for our ratification focus.)
• Democratic Participation
• Establish no-fault in-person absentee voting (SB677)
  For many women, juggling work, school, and childcare to get to the polls on Election Day is simply too much. Expanding
  the opportunities to vote will expand women’s participation in our democracy and our ability to make our voices heard.
• Ensure impartial election maps. Voters should choose their elected officials, not the other way around. In too many parts of Virginia, women don’t have a say in choosing their representatives because the election outcome has already been rigged.

 

    

         

Special Election: Tomorrow, January 6th!

Don’t forget tomorrow’s special election, Tuesday January 6th:

Virginia NOW has endorsed Kathleen Murphy to represent your delegate district, the 34th, in the General Assembly. The election is Tuesday, January 6th. Polls are open from 6 am to 7 pm at your regular voting place.

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Use the 19th!

Paradise Kendra
Communications VP
Virginia NOW

 

Keep the pressure on Illinois legislators, it’s working! #RatifyERA

If you are calling Illinois about the #ERA today, please call ONLY the legislators on the list attached. UPDATED call list to #RatifyERA in Illinois, plus scripts and talking points at the link!

Calls are flooding in, on both sides, to all offices, and staffers are unable to do anything else. Hurray!  But let’s focus just these 10 or so.

Pro-Life and Schalfley lobbyists are also in the house. This is not over and we’re not finished!

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Courtesy of www.peopledemandingaction.org

Would you like to make a few calls for the ERA?

All legislators on this list are considering voting YES on the ERA in Illinois!

Call numbers, email addresses, a script, and talking points below…

Once a legislator is moved to YES, please confirm carefully.
Then ask that legislator to contact Rep. Lou Lang in order to confirm their support for the bill SJRCA0075
Please also contact Jeanne Dauray either via mobile phone at (814) 598-8532 or via email at Jeanne@pdamerica.org to report the change.

State Rep’s First Name	State Rep’s Last Name	Party	District	Springfield Office #	District Office #	Email
Daniel	Beiser	D	111	(217) 782-5996	(618) 465-5900	dvbeiser@sbcglobal.net
Brandon	Phelps	D	118	(217) 782-5131	(618) 253-4189	bphelps118@gmail.com
Jerry	Costello	D	116	(217) 782-1018	(618) 282-7284	staterepcostello@gmail.com
Sue	Scherer	D	96	(217) 524-0353	(217) 877-9636	StateRepSue@gmail.com
Dennis	Reboletti	R	45	(217) 782-4014	(630) 628-0045	RepReboletti@gmail.com
Ed	Sullivan, Jr.	R	51	(217) 782-3696	(847) 566-5115	ILhouse51@sbcglobal.net
Sandra M.	Pihos	R	48	(217) 782-8037	(630) 858-8855	community@sandrapihos.com
Katherine	Cloonen	D	79	(217) 782-5981	(815) 939-1983	staterepcloonen79@att.net
John	Cabello	R	68	(217) 782-0455	(815) 282-0083	johncabello@aol.com
John E.	Bradley	D	117	(217) 782-1051	(618) 997-9697	repjohnbradley@mychoice.net
Michael	Tryon	R	66	(217) 782-0432	(815) 459-6453	Mike@miketryon.com
Robert	Pritchard	R	70	(217) 782-0425	(815) 748-3494	bob@pritchardstaterep.com

Call Script for Tuesday, December 1st

Hi, my name is __________ and I am a voter. I know that the Equal Rights Amendment, bill SJRCA 0075, is coming up for a vote Wednesday and I want Rep. _________ to vote YES on the ERA.

This is an issue for me because my (daughter, grand-daughter, sister, mother, etc.)…
…lives in (insert state here) where there is no equality for women.
OR
…could live or work in a state in the future where there is no equality for women.

Without a United States Constitutional amendment, equality is not guaranteed. For instance, in April of 2013 Wisconsin removed their equal pay clause. Therefore, this vote in Illinois has the potential to extend the rights that women in Illinois enjoy, to all 50 states. Thus, I would expect that Rep. _______ will be voting YES on the ERA during the session.

Additionally, I know that many people are concerned about how pro-life issues will be impacted by this amendment. The truth is, it will actually help reduce abortions. Countries that have passed an ERA have seen documented increases in their GDP. This means that the pay for women increased, and economic security for women and their families increased too. When that happens, we know the number of abortions go down, since women often choose abortion due to poor economic circumstances. The increased economic security that ERA would bring also means that less people would need government assistance programs. Thus, the ERA is a win-win situation for everyone.

Would you please pass this information along to Rep. _________ and confirm their position on this bill? They may also contact Rep. Lou Lang to confirm their support for the ERA.

_____________________________________________

Important Call Tips and Information…

• If you live in the legislator’s district, please identify yourself as such. It is VERY important. If you are a resident of Illinois, please also identify yourself as such.
  .

• No matter who you call on the list, please keep your conversations positive, hopeful, respectful, and filled with expectation that these legislators will do the right thing. All the legislators on this list have expressed support for the ERA at one point or another, and many are actively searching for ways to continue expressing that support. Many live in very conservative districts, rural districts, and pro-life districts which include constituencies that may have difficulty and reservations about supporting the ERA, as well as groups within that are actively opposing the ERA. Illinois is a battleground state when it comes to the ERA and you are calling into the heart of those areas. Be cautious and extraordinarily diplomatic. We are confident you can do this!
  .

• Pro-Life Districts: If you are calling a pro-life district, please be respectful and supportive of the legislator and sensitive to their position. Also, keep in mind that these legislators were asked by Right to Life, who provided their November election endorsements, to vote against the ERA. That being said, our campaign is currently seeking information from appropriate organizations to demonstrate how they can still be pro-life and pro-ERA based on pro-life principles, beliefs, and concerns. Some information you may want to use (see below) is that the ERA helps lift women out of poverty and thus, reduces the number of abortions.
  .
• Given that Illinois has an ERA in their state constitution that has existed since 1970, you may want to mention that to these legislators, and state that as a result, nothing will change for their constituents in the state of Illinois, but it could improve the economic situation for women outside of Illinois, which includes a lot of grandmothers, mothers, sisters, aunts, daughters, and grand-daughters of Illinois residents.

_____________________________________________

Answering questions…

Is this necessary?  Yes, because right now women have no constitutional guarantee of equality. Current laws can be changed, amended, and challenged. This is of concern being as US Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has already stated he believes women DO NOT have protection from sex discrimination currently.

Are wages really unequal?  Yes, even after all possible impact factors such as education, job performance, time off to care for children, and other items are taken out of the equation, women in the United States still take home less pay. It breaks down like this: For every $1.00 a man makes, an Asian American woman makes .87 cents, a White woman makes .78 cents, an African American woman makes .64 cents, a Native American woman makes .60 cents, and Latinas only get .53 cents for that same dollar. That means Latina women are making about half the pay for the same work!

Couldn’t this serve to actually hurt women?  No. In fact, the ERA is already enshrined in the Illinois State Constitution and has been since 1970. Interestingly enough, none of the horrific consequences have come to pass as predicted by those who oppose the ERA, and the women of Illinois actually enjoy better economic outcomes than many of their counterparts in states that do not have an ERA.

If Illinois already has an ERA, why should I support this?  Because many states do not have an ERA and thus, not all women are protected. Additionally, federal laws and the US Constitution generally override state laws and constitutions in many instances. This creates a situation where equality is not a sure and guaranteed thing for all women in the United States.

Hasn’t the ratification deadline passed?  Yes, it has, however, deadlines can be extended or erased, and there is precedent for resurrecting old amendments, such as the 27th amendment, which was ratified after 203 years. Additionally, there is legislation currently moving through the US House and Senate to remove the deadline for the ERA.

Why are we doing this now?  We have been actually trying to do this for sometime, in fact the Illinois State House passed this back in 2003, but did not get Senate support. Now we have Senate support and do not want to pass up on this opportunity. Also, it is not just happening in Illinois. This legislation is in fact moving through multiple state houses currently, but Illinois is most likely to be the first to pass the amendment.

What does the amendment say exactly?
Section 1. Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.
Section 2. The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.
Section 3. This amendment shall take effect two years after the date of ratification.

But I am Pro-Life?  Pro-life does not mean anti-woman. You can be pro-life and pro-ERA. In fact, a long line of Catholic bishops have signed on in support of the ERA, and we are currently contacting them so that they make their voices heard once again on this important issue. Additionally, the biggest reason women choose abortions in this country is due to poor economic circumstances. Thus, we already know that when women are provided with economic security, abortion rates go down, therefore the ERA can help strengthen the economic circumstances of women nationally and reduce the number of abortions. Not only that, but there is no abortion language in the federal ERA we are supporting. In some states, they have included specific language, which has affected laws in relation to abortion, but the federal ERA has no such language.

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Merry Christmas to All and to All Equal Rights!

Paradise Kendra
Virginia NOW
Communications VP, Webmistress

IL to VOTE on ERA Thursday, ACT NOW!

From the Coalition on the ground in IL today, see below. Easy things to do to support their lobbying. They will meet with legislators today. A vote on the ERA is scheduled for tomorrow, but the speaker of the IL House (and the most powerful politician in IL) isn’t coming to work to convene the House for business. His name is Michael Madigan, he’s chair of the Democratic Party of Illinois, and you (or the press) can contact his office here: (773) 581-8000. He’s not on social media, but this satirical Twitter account is:  @KingofIL.

Newspapers to contact: Chicago Tribune (http://www.chicagotribune.com/) ,  St. Louis Post Dispatch (http://www.stltoday.com) , and the Belleville  News Democrat (http://www.bnd.com), St. Louis Beacon (from public radio station: http://www.stlpublicradio.org/info/onair.php)

(*) (*) (*) (*) (*)

ERA Action in collaboration with other activist groups including PDA ERA 3 State Strategy Team, Illinois NOW, AAUW, Katrina’s Dream will be on the ground in Springfield, IL, Wednesday, November 19 to ensure the “Land of Lincoln” becomes the first state to #RatifyERA in the 21st Century.

WE NEED YOUR HELP NOW! The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) will be moved to a final vote in the Illinois House of Representatives in the first few days of the Veto Session. Likely dates for the vote are Thursday, November 20th or Tuesday, December 2nd. However, the vote depends on two things: 1) Having the last handful of YES commitments for votes from Illinois State Representatives and 2) Those Representatives showing up for the vote.

What can you do? A lot actually.

FIRST CALL – You can use this link http://bit.ly/1r6LqXr for a target list of Illinois State Representatives to call, along with a call script that will work whether you live in district, in Illinois, or anywhere in the US.

SECOND SIGN PETITION – You can sign the following petition by clicking this link http://bit.ly/1HgmMt8 urging House members to vote YES for ratification of the ERA in Illinois. The petition will be presented to Representative Lou Lang to show the solidarity we have with him, the women of Illinois, and all supporters of the ERA in this fight. And please share the petition on Facebook and Twitter.

THIRD – Use this link http://bit.ly/1vmFwTZ to get access to additional information and talking points on the ERA, Twitter hashtags, Twitter address for legislators in Illinois, and other resources. SPECIAL THANKS to Simone Roberts of Virginia NOW who created this list and graciously made it available for sharing.

# # #

FOR WOMEN,

Simone Roberts
Historian and ERA Coordinator

Virginia NOW   
VirginiaERANetwork (blog for ERA project)

NATIONAL AND VIRGINIA NOW PACs ENDORSE:

For information on VA NOW PAC priorities, click here.
For consideration by the PAC, candidates must request endorsement.

The National Organization for Women and Virginia NOW endorse the following the candidates for the US House of Representatives:

Suzanne Patrick,  for Virginia’s Second District:  suzannepatrickforcongress.com

Number 1 on her priorities list, Jobs and the Economy: “To me, standing up for the middle class means fighting to create and protect high paying jobs here in Virginia. I’ll do that by fighting for our port, military facilities, and the small businesses that keep our local economy thriving. My business and military background fuel my commitment to growing our local economy to strengthen opportunities for middle class families.”

One violence against women: “I agree with Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth’s approach of giving victims two options: (1) stay within the chain of command, or (2) give victims and alternative option outside the chain of command but still within the military to bring perpetrators to justice.”

Lawrence Gaughan, for Virginia’s Fifth District: gaughanforcongress.com

Gaughan hopes to represent a large and diverse district, and one of Virginia’s most conservative. Jobs and education are his top two issues, but he clearly states his support for women’s and LBGTQ equality, for reproductive justice, for protecting voting rights, and for background checks for weapon purchases.

John Foust, for Virginia’s Tenth District: foustforvirginia.com 

Foust is challenging Rep. Barbara Comstock, one of our more notable anti-feminist female politicians. Vienna Area NOW is running phone banks supporting Foust. Of the effort, Val Dutton, president of the chapter writes:

“Dial it up for a Woman-to-Woman phone bank for John Foust, candidate for the 10th District, from 3 to 5 pm on Oct. 12th at the Foust McLean headquarters, 6888 Elm St. Even if you’re not in the 10th District, we need your help in this race against the formidable and well-funded extremist Barbara Comstock. I’ll provide snacks and beverages. Phone banking can seem intimidating, but this is a process that really works and is fun once you get your groove! Additionally, we’ll speak only to the women of the household, telling them why we think John is a pro-woman kind of guy!”

Also, he’s got a sharp sense of humor (click here).

 Elliot Fausz, Virginia’s Fourth District, for the US Congress:  www.fausz4congress.com.

Fousz is particularly keen to bring better infrastructure, student loan debt relief, and economic stimulus to Virginia’s 4th. We can’t tell you what candidates say on our questionaires, but we can tell you this: Fousz was detailed, original, and energetic in describing his positions on our issues. He has a dedicated Twitter hashtag: #FouszintheHouse.

In the election for Manassas City Council, Virginia NOW has endorsed:

Patricia Richie-Folks, for City Council: pat4citycouncil.com.

Richie-Folks is deeply interested in economic development in Manassas such as developing heavier use of the local airport, promoting the area to the technology industry, and working to improve commuter infrastructure — especially the Route 28 corridor. She will look to protect and enhance Manassas public school system, and deepen the city’s support of its police department by bringing the number of officers more fully inline with the city’s population.

The council is, at present, well populated with male representatives of the city. A woman with good ideas is running, Manassas, we do hope you will welcome and vote for her energy and forward thinking agenda!

Medical Privacy: Not So Private

 

Many patients don’t realize that a physician’s ability to service the community can be suspended or retracted entirely by the DEA for their patient’s misuse or diversion of drugs.

(*)  ###  (*)

Why is this an issue for the everyday American who never intends to overdose or abuse their prescription dosage?

 

 

The DEA is implementing stricter and stricter regulations on physicians and their ability to provide prescriptions. They are also enforcing legal penalties for abuse of prescription drugs on the doctor who prescribed them as well as the patient who actually broke “regulation”.

For example, if a patient went to a second doctor in addition to their primary one to gain a second prescription, the DEA now uses the Prescription Monitoring Program to enforce the legal repercussions against the doctors who prescribed a medication for their patient in addition to the person who committed the crime.

(*)    The DEA’s agenda is not medical. It is political.   (*)

 

They are expecting doctors to be responsible for their patient’s actions outside of the office.

• Why is it the doctor’s fault if a patient were to overdose on a medication?
• Why should the doctor to go prison or lose their medical license if their patient obtained duplicate medications from another physician?

 

They shouldn’t be. They’re not cops. They’re there to provide the best health care possible. They can’t do this if the DEA puts so many barriers in their way that they’re afraid to write up a legitimate prescription that could save a life, prolong a life, or enrich one.

The DEA is the enforcing arm of this agenda, the “messenger”.

 

The Department of Health and Human Services (through the Food and Drug Administration) has the responsibility of making medical recommendations on drug related issues to the Secretary of Health based on scientific evaluations.

Beyond the medical spectrum, the Office of Diversion Control (DEA Headquarters) has expanded its department making it a primary goal to “regulate” controlled substances in hopes of decreasing drug abuse.

Under federal law, all businesses which manufacture or distribute controlled drugs, all health professionals entitled to dispense, administer or prescribe them, and all pharmacies entitled to fill prescriptions must register with the DEA. Registrants must comply with a series of regulatory requirements relating to drug security, records accountability, and adherence to standards.

All of these investigations are conducted by Diversion Investigators (DIs), a specialist position within the DEA assigned to investigate suspected sources of diversion and take appropriate criminal and/or administrative actions. Prescription Database Management Programs (PDMP) aid and facilitate investigation and surveillance.

Sometimes in an effort to solve a problem, we end up creating a new one. Sometimes with the most sincere motivations, laws do more to restrict our freedom than to protect the innocent.

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Our privacy, protection, and freedom rely on the level of medical expertise and the direct relationship between doctor and patient access permitted within our healthcare system.

 

Fight for the future.

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