February 23, 2017

Potential Impact of ACA Repeal on Pregnant Women and Mothers

Our Associate Alex Berke is quoted in this Well Rounded NY article about how a repeal of the Affordable Care Act could impact pregnant women and moms:

"But Trump’s threat to repeal Obamacare means a potential loss much broader than coverage for breastfeeding counseling. “The ACA also includes provisions providing breastfeeding moms at companies with 50 or more employees with a reasonable break time to pump in a private location that is not a bathroom,” says Alex Berke, an associate at Berke-Weiss Law PLLC. Berke spearheads the firm’s Pregnancy Project, including classes on workplace rights for the modern mom.

“Any repeal of the ACA would take [workplace breastfeeding] rights away and leave women vulnerable to being denied health insurance due to their pregnancy or cesarean recovery being considered a pre-existing condition,” Berke says. “Women should also be concerned that an ACA repeal could allow insurance companies to charge women more in their monthly premiums, a practice that was stopped by the ACA, and is explicitly allowed in Congressman Tom Price’s bill, one of the few legislative ‘replace’ options.”'

Learn More about Your Rights with the Pregnancy Project

The Week in FFCRA Cases: Judge Invalidates DOL Implementation, Expanding Eligibility

August 18, 2020
Disability Discrimination
Leave
The complaints we found relevant this week are eerily similar—parents who need to take care of their children, some of whom are immunocompromised, are being denied telework or leave or are being terminated. Further, we are continuing to see plaintiffs who voice concerns to their employers about workplace safety being terminated after doing so.

Federal Family and Sick Leave for Covid-19 Expanded by New York District Court

August 14, 2020
Leave
Paid Family Leave
Pregnancy Discrimination
FMLA
S.D.N.Y. Judge Paul Oetken invalidated parts of the Department of Labor’s interpretation of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act in a lawsuit brought by New York State Attorney General Letitia James.

New York State Human Rights Law Invoked in Sexual Harassment Arbitration Case

August 11, 2020
Sexual Harassment
A split has appeared in how to handle sexual harassment cases with a New York trial judge ruling recently that the state’s Human Rights Law prevents companies and employees from entering arbitration over sexual harassment. This contradicts an earlier ruling in New York’s Southern District where a judge ruled that arbitration under the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) supersedes New York’s statutory prohibition against arbitration.

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