Georgia Senator Changes Attitudes and Policies Toward Women’s Health

Senator Connie Stokes (Flemming Fellow 1996) is changing the way people think about issues of women’s health.

As Chair of the Georgia Senate Health and Human Services Committee, Stokes worked for several years to create a state Office of Women’s Health, to educate citizens about the unique health concerns of women and champion cutting edge innovations, options and treatments for women. Last year, her hard work paid off with the enactment of SB 241.

SB 241 is a comprehensive administrative reform that creates a new state Department of Community Health to pull together the previously fragmented and often unresponsive state offices that dealt with health into a strong force for improved access to and expanded coverage for health care.

As a chief sponsor of this legislation, Stokes spearheaded successful advocacy for the provision which created the Office of Women’s Health. This office is charged with developing and distributing a statewide comprehensive plan to address women’s health issues, write reports, promote health education, and serve as a clearinghouse for information.

“The office will look beyond reproduction to address issues important to women, such as depression, menopause and cardio-vascular disease,” explained Senator Stokes. “We want to dispel myths surrounding women’s health.”

In addition to her leadership of the Health Committee, Stokes serves as Secretary of the Banking and Financial Institutions Committee, and is a member of the Appropriations Committee and the Insurance and Labor Committee. Working in both the areas of health and insurance, Stokes recently sponsored legislation prohibiting insurance companies from discriminating against victims of domestic abuse when they try to renew or purchase health, life or casualty insurance. Also, as a member of the Georgia Commission on Family Violence, Stokes successfully sponsored a resolution to create the Senate Task Force on Violence in the Media.