CSDE Trainee Tess Abrahamson-Richards (Social Work), former CSDE Trainee Elizabeth Pelletier, CSDE Affiliate Jennifer Romich (Social Work), and co-author Kilohana Haitsuka recently published an article titled, “Perinatal Wage Equity, Parental Leave Access, and Reproductive Justice Among American Indian and Alaska Native Working Mothers in Washington State,” in Social Service Review.  The authors used mixed methods and grounded their analysis in an Indigenous theoretical framework. Quantitative findings reveal significant perinatal earnings disruptions, disparities in both earned wage income and projected paid leave eligibility, and intersectional inequities in projected paid leave eligibility. Qualitative results underscore the serious adverse impacts of insufficient paid leave access for working AIAN mothers, as well as both the inequities and the individual and community strengths they experience after welcoming a new child. This is the first study of state-funded paid family medical leave or of perinatal earnings volatility to focus on Native people.

CSDE Affiliate Kemi M. Doll (Obstetrics & Gynecology) was quoted in Scientific American in coverage of a decision by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to remove the black box warning on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) medications for menopause. Estrogen-only therapies, however, will still carry labels that share the risk of endometrial or uterine cancer. Doll emphasized that people who have a uterus should be aware of the risks of these treatments. Doll also called for more research on HRT with new cohorts and centered on new questions that are relevant to women today. Doll’s contribution to this article was also featured in UW Today. Read more.