
Lauren
Hoffman
Associate Director, Women’s Economic Security
Thanks to the strong economic recovery, women’s labor force participation is reaching new highs, with prime-age women’s employment back to pre-pandemic levels—although long-standing pay gaps and occupational segregation remain challenges.
The Center for American Progress recently hosted a roundtable of more than 20 advocates from the reproductive and disability rights and justice communities—and has compiled the top five policy priorities important to focus on this year.
The PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act provides critical protections for women who choose to breastfeed in the workplace and expands protections in the 2010 Break Time for Nursing Mothers Act.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s new guidance on medication abortion has the potential to increase access to care, though challenges remain.
This is the first installment in the Center for American Progress’ series highlighting best practices to improve and expand contraceptive access at the state level.
This fact sheet accompanies the Center for American Progress’ report on best practices to expand and improve contraceptive access at the state level, covering common implementation challenges and offering recommendations for one-year contraceptive dispensing policies.
Pregnancy carries risks, including death. Without abortion access, more women will die.
States with weak gun violence prevention laws see significantly higher rates of female gun homicide, while states with strong guns laws have much lower rates.
Approving birth control pills to be sold over the counter could expand access to contraceptive options, increase women’s bodily autonomy, and ensure people can decide when to become pregnant.
Approving oral hormonal contraceptive pills to be sold over the counter could expand access to contraceptive options, increase women’s bodily autonomy, and ensure people can decide when to become pregnant.
Women and their families should find some current financial pressures—fueled partly by the gender wage gap—alleviated by recent policy wins, particularly if policymakers prioritize implementing new pathways to good jobs for women in the years ahead.
Rose Khattar and Lauren Hoffman discuss how, in addition to recent reforms such as the Inflation Reduction Act and the student loan relief plan, more measures are necessary to finally close the pay gap that continues to limit economic opportunity for many women.