Obama says: “Now, the Freedom of Choice Act is not highest legislative priority.

President Obama’s First 100 Days: Women’s Health Becomes a National Priority

* Health Care Reform — President Obama convened the White House Forum on Health Care Reform, signaling his commitment to ensuring every American has access to quality, affordable health care. PPFA President Cecile Richards was invited to participate and share how the organization, as a leading health care provider, sees the need to reform the nation’s health care system to ensure that access to women’s health is a priority.

* Affordable Birth Control —The president signed legislation to restore access to affordable birth control for millions of college students and low-income women, and help ensure access to affordable contraception for millions of women, especially in these tough economic times.

* Budget Priorities — In his proposed budget, the president included a commonsense Medicaid waiver to expand family planning under Medicaid and called for evidence-based, medically accurate sex education.

* Global Gag Rule — With the stroke of a pen, President Obama overturned the global gag rule and once again allowed millions of women around the world access to critical reproductive health care services.

* HHS Midnight Rule — The Obama administration began the process of rescinding the Bush administration’s midnight HHS regulation that limits the rights of patients to receive complete and accurate health care information and services.

* Secretary of State — With the appointment of Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, President Obama signaled his commitment to approach the issues of women’s health and rights, family planning, and global poverty with the seriousness and commitment they deserve. Secretary Clinton understands that improving the status of women is not simply a moral imperative; it is necessary to building democracies around the globe.

* Health and Human Services Secretary — The president, nominated longtime champion of women’s health, Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius, to be the secretary of HHS. Governor Sebelius has been a strong advocate for health care reform and has a proven track record of supporting increased access to affordable health care and commonsense prevention policies that improve health outcomes.

* White House Council on Women and Girls — The president established the White House Council on Women and Girls to focus on a wide range of issues facing American women and their families, including the high rate of unintended pregnancies and the alarming number of sexually transmitted infections.

* Plan B — Under the Obama administration, the FDA now supports over-the-counter access to Plan B (emergency contraception) for women 17 years and older.

* AIDS Outreach — President Obama has made a strong commitment to developing a comprehensive national HIV/AIDS strategy that includes all federal agencies. The strategy will be designed to reduce the number of HIV infections, increase access to health care, and reduce HIV-related health disparities to address the growing HIV/AIDS crisis among women and girls in the United States.