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Numerous members have stopped short of promising residents a sea change should the legislation pass, believing it should not be seen as a substitute for a comprehensive violence reduction plan. As Council member Christina Henderson (I-At Large) noted, “a lot of things in this bill are, how do you deal with accountability and consequences after a crime has already been committed?” And accountability, she noted, also still depends on prosecutors and judges under federal control. Still, she added, “while there’s not a single event or moment that led to where we are, nor is there going to be one bill that leads us out — we’re at this point willing to try any and all things to try to reverse course here.”

At-Large Councilmember Christina Henderson says, “DC Crime Facts has infused nuance and constructive conversation about the public safety landscape, which overall has helped to provide the public with a better understanding of the process and challenges.”

When a female high school student becomes pregnant, her chances of graduating on time declines by 40 percentage points, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As part of an effort to address this phenomenon, Council member Christina Henderson (I-At Large) introduced the Extended Students’ Right to Home or Hospital Instruction last summer. On Tuesday, the council unanimously approved a committee print of the legislation...“This legislation would dismantle the biases we have regarding health conditions and help students who find themselves in a situation where they need assistance,” Henderson said. “I look forward to getting this bill passed and ensuring all students whose health needs require accomodation[s] get those needs met.”

On Jan. 17, the council’s Committee on Public Safety and the Judiciary, which includes Council members Brooke Pinto (D-Ward 2), Christina Henderson (I-At Large), Anita Bonds (D-At Large), Charles Allen (D-Ward 6) and Vincent C. Gray (D-Ward 7), unanimously approved the Secure DC Omnibus Bill’s passage to the Committee of the Whole.

“While I will vote in favor of this measure today, I continue to have some reservations about parts of this bill,” Henderson said during the committee meeting. Henderson specifically raised concerns regarding the bill’s provision to reinstate the Metropolitan Police Department’s ability to declare drug-free zones. “As chair of the Committee on Health, I am concerned how drug-free zones may criminalize individuals who are suffering from substance abuse disorder,” she said. “Let me be clear, yes we need to disrupt the sale of illegal drugs and shut our open-air drug markets, but we can do that while supporting those who are suffering from addiction and ensuring they don’t end up in jail, which is not going to lead to further treatment. I’m not yet sure that we struck that balance here, so I want to continue working with you over that,” she continued.

In the midst of a crime crisis, the DC Council unanimously confirmed Pamela Smith as the new chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). Councilmember Christina Henderson gives her support for Chief Smith in her statement. “Chief Smith is able to solidify cross-agency relationships and improve community policing to meet the needs of all affected residents,” Henderson said. . “I trust that she will because lives are very much at stake. "

Expanded infertility health insurance coverage: A D.C. law approved in fall 2023 aims to help people who are trying to get pregnant. As of Jan. 1, people who use DC Healthcare Alliance and Medicaid can have their infertility diagnosis covered, along with three cycles of ovulation-enhancing drugs. In 2025, people who get insurance through D.C. employers or DC Health Link will become eligible, too. Their benefits will include diagnosis, three rounds of IVF, and if needed, an embryo transfer to a surrogate. D.C. Councilmember Christina Henderson cosponsored the Expanding Access to Fertility Treatment Amendment Act. “Infertility is a medical issue, and therefore your medical insurance should cover the ability for you to seek treatment,” she said.

“Infertility is a medical issue, and therefore your medical insurance should cover the ability for you to seek treatment,” Council member Christina Henderson, who co-sponsored the law, told NBC Washington. “When folks learn that it could cost upward of $100,000, $150,000 in order for you to even be able to begin the process to try to start a family, it’s just out of reach for a lot of people,” Henderson said.

D.C. Council Member Christina Henderson cosponsored the DC Expanding Access to Fertility Treatment Amendment Act. Infertility is a medical issue, and therefore your medical insurance should cover the ability for you to seek treatment. Henderson said she hopes the law will help families. “When folks learn that it could cost upwards of $100,000, $150,000 in order for you to even be able to begin the process to try to start a family, it's just out of reach for a lot of people,” she said.

Henderson said the Give SNAP a Raise Amendment Act, estimated to cost more than $213 million between fiscal year 2023 and fiscal year 2026, can do just that at a time when inflation, hits to the agriculture industry, and higher transportation costs have increased grocery prices. “If we do what we can to expand the purchasing power of communities using SNAP and WIC, it doesn’t only benefit them, it benefits our ability to have grocery stores in these areas because now they have conducted research on who can purchase more beyond the first of the month,” Henderson said. “Doing this will have a domino effect on the issues concerning food deserts.”

Despite the 2017 law, At-Large Councilmember Christina Henderson says having a full-time nurse at every school for at least 40 hours a week has never been a reality. The law is contingent on funding, which was not included in the city’s budget. “I actually do think this model will deliver quality care to our young people and provide a level of consistency that our schools have been asking for,” Henderson says. This year, Henderson says there are about 96 full-time nurses and 88 health technicians spread out across 184 schools. In the last school year, 102 out of 183 schools had a full-time nurse. “We are trying as best we can to make sure that there are people who are properly trained in the building to do a lot of the care work,” Henderson says. “I know people think like, ‘of course, every school has a nurse.’ That is not the norm,” Henderson says.

At-Large Councilmember Christina Henderson wrote on X (formerly Twitter) Sunday that DPR’s biggest challenge in keeping pools open past Labor Day is staffing — many of its lifeguards are students whose classes have already resumed, she said. “Appreciate the DPR team working to make this happen given the heat advisory for the next few days,” she wrote, adding that she hoped to see a few more pools would be extended eventually.