The FY2011 Budget: Impact on Women and Families

With much fanfare and more than a little trepidation, President Obama released his FY2011 budget on Monday.

In this post, I’ll be focusing on budget items that fall under the Department of Health and Human Services. I know that moms and others care about more than just health but before you start shouting “Where's education? Where’s money for veterans and their families? What about foreign assistance?” let me remind you that budget is BIG. Like many thousands of pages big.

I know many people have been reading about a spending freeze. Obama wants to – with some exceptions – freeze FY11 spending at FY10 levels to hold down our debt. Mandatory spending programs – Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security – would be exempt as would defense spending. When you carve out those exceptions you’re left with a relatively small fraction of federal spending, but, hey, you gotta start somewhere, right?

The explanatory document (read: actual, human English) about HHS is here. It is a nice, easy read. But it is only eight pages. Why? Well, it just an overview of the president’s outlook on HHS spending; no details. The appendix (read: wonkery on high) is here. The appendix is only about 50 pages but in teeny 8 point font and has most of the spending details on a wide variety of programs, agencies, offices and more. Finally, HHS’ own budget with lots of details about what they plan to spend their dough on is here (114 pages, and pretty readable if bone-dry).

Because the budget is so very, very large I’m just hitting a couple of highlights (and low-lights):

• Joanna’s Law, the Gynecological Cancer Education and Awareness Act, is on the chopping block at $6.8m as is the Geraldine Ferraro Cancer Education Program at $4.7m. These cancer prevention activities will continue elsewhere but it is sad to see funding fought for by countless women eliminated. Still, ovarian cancer research/screening overall is up from $5.707m to $5.714.
• The CDC is recommending $900,000 for microbicide development. If you don’t know about microbicides, please check out the Global Campaign for Microbicide Development.
• Safe Motherhood and Infant Health programs would receive $55.643m, $10.861m above FY10. Of that amount, $22.3m will be directed to preventing unintended pregnancy, especially teen pregnancy.  To read more about the exciting pregnancy/safe motherhood/unintended pregnancy goings-on, click here and go to page 149.
• The WISEWOMAN programs gets level funding of $20.787m. Great that it wasn’t cut, too bad more couldn’t be recommended since cardiovascular disease is a major health risk for women.
• More money for autism research! From $22.061m to $23.827m.
• Less money for breast and cervical cancer screening via the NBCCEDP, from $214.85m to $210.935m.

And to all of you who think prevention programs are just a big slush fund? Chew on this: “A recent Trust for America’s Health analysis found that an investment of $10 per person per year in community-based programs tackling physical inactivity, poor nutrition, and smoking would yield more than $16 billion in medical cost savings annually within 5 years—a remarkable return of $5.60 for every dollar spent, without considering the additional gains in worker productivity, reduced absenteeism at work and school, and enhanced quality of life.”

Edited to add: If you want the complete, soup-to-nuts, rundown on the budget please visit Women's Policy, Inc. for their eight-page summary of all the programs affecting women and their families.