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“This is something I wish we had done sooner, to be honest,” said D.C. Council member Christina Henderson (I-At Large), who since authoring the bill has heard from friends as well as strangers who have struggled with infertility. “It is an emotional burden. It is a physical burden — you know, we see the needles and all various things — and I hope that this legislation can take a little bit of the financial burden off of someone as they pursue this option.” “I think anything the District is doing right now has the potential for Congress to meddle,” Henderson said in an interview Friday. “But I’m hopeful that [they don’t] because … it is very hard to be engaged with people and not know someone who has had to use help in order to start their family, including in Republican circles.”

Two others — Robert C. White Jr. (D-At Large) and Christina Henderson (I-At Large) — referenced the mass incarceration of the 1980s and 1990s and said the bill could repeat mistakes of the past.

On the measure that would repeal D.C.’s law protecting workers from discrimination based on their reproductive health choices, council member Christina Henderson (I-At Large) tweeted: “It’s been law for EIGHT years. Why do they hate women?”

“People have waited years just to save up enough money to go through the process and then you hope that it works,” At-Large Councilmember Christina Henderson, said. “Infertility is a health diagnosis and your health insurance should provide coverage to treat it.” Henderson is hopeful this will be a game changer when it comes to addressing equity issues, both in terms of LGBTQ couples and minorities. “From a racial equity standpoint a lot of people when they think about IVF it’s synonymous with rich and white,” Henderson said. “Often in the past, insurance companies have denied this coverage for [LGBTQ+ couples] because laws and regulations have defined infertility in heterosexual terms.”

“The timing of the release of this investigation summary speaks volumes regarding the handling of this matter by the Bowser Administration,” said Councilmember Christina Henderson (I-At Large) in a statement. “From the beginning, when the public was told that the former deputy mayor was simply resigning to pursue opportunities in the private sector, to the release of this report late on the Saturday night of a three-day holiday weekend, it has been difficult to trust in the thoroughness of this internal investigation.”

Ward 2 Councilmember Brooke Pinto introduced the bill on Thursday; it was co-introduced by At-Large Councilmember Christina Henderson and Ward 5 Councilmember Zachary Parker.

At-Large Councilmember Christina Henderson emphasizes that these changes have been planned for several years, and the CDA program can be completed in roughly six months if a participant goes part-time. She says the regulations were the decision “of the early childcare community in an effort to gain increased wages and to improve the quality of readiness as [the kids] transition into school.” “As a government, we have not always done well in following through and building trust,” Henderson says. “But with the Pay Equity Fund, I hope we’re moving in the right direction and proving that we can do this.”

The DC Council has given initial approval on a bill that would require insurance companies to cover infertility treatment. D.C. Councilmember Christina Henderson joined the DMV Zone.

“I wish we had done this sooner,” Henderson said in an interview on Monday. She first introduced the bill in February 2022, but it didn’t make it to a vote that Council session. She re-introduced it in January. “I’ve heard from people who’ve either sent me DMs or messages on Twitter in terms of the challenges they had to face to conceive, or even folks who said … they took a second job at Amazon, or they took a second job at Starbucks in the area, because those companies offer health insurance benefits [that] do include IVF coverage.”

“How many others convicted of DUIs have not had action taken on them?” council member Christina Henderson (I-At Large) said to us. “This behooves everyone to go backwards and look.”

At-large Councilmember Christina Henderson tells us why she voted for it, despite a few misgivings. Plus, earlier this year, the city approved a nearly 9% hike on rent-controlled apartments. Many on the council argue the increase is too high. We ask Councilmember Henderson where she stands. D.C. Public Schools handed out nearly $300 million in unlawful contracts. Councilmember Henderson gives us her take. And as D.C. Police Chief Robert Contee retires, what’s his legacy?

“How many others convicted of DUIs have not had action taken on them?” council member Christina Henderson (I-At Large) said to us. “This behooves everyone to go backwards and look.”