New bill would require paid leave for this group

A new bill may require firms to give a new group of workers paid time off to deal with grief.

Who’s the new group?

Workers who experience painful challenges while seeking to grow their family.

New bill invests in research

In July, a new bill introduced by Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) serves to raise awareness about pregnancy loss and establish new paid leave benefits for these workers.

The Support Through Loss Act would:

• require firms to provide at least three days of paid leave for workers to deal with grief following a pregnancy loss, an unsuccessful assisted reproductive technology procedure, a failed adoption, a failed surrogacy arrangement, or a medical diagnosis or event that impacts pregnancy or fertility
• provide the National Institutes of Health $45 million a year for federal research into miscarriage and pregnancy loss, and
• require the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to create and provide public info regarding pregnancy loss.

Feel alone

If you think stillbirths don’t happen that often nowadays, think again. According to the CDC, “About one pregnancy in 100 at 20 weeks of pregnancy and later is affected by stillbirth, and each year about 24,000 babies are stillborn in the United States.”

And many families that experience a loss when it comes to growing a family, feel isolated. But the lawmakers noted the loss is “an experience shared across communities and background.”

The reason it feels isolated? People don’t talk about it and the available information lacks truth. This bill aims to change that.

People who experience this loss aren’t alone.

“Our bill sends a message to families that they are not alone, and would support those experiencing the loss of a pregnancy by providing them with the resources, workforce supports, and care necessary to recover and heal,” said Pressley.

We’ll keep you posted.