Maybe it’s only a coincidence, but yesterday I ran across two seemingly unrelated items that grouped Kentucky as one of six states with a certain distinction – and, now don’t be surprised - neither are positive recognitions.
First, my inbox contained an e-mail forwarded from a colleague that, among of things, recounted the results of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) project called Grading of the States. Each year, NAMI looks at states’ efforts in promoting and supporting effective programs and treatments for individuals with mental illnesses. I imagine few were surprised to find that, in 2009, Kentucky received the same mark it has received nearly every year the grades have been awarded - we were one of six states to receive an “F.”
Next, I was catching up on my periodical reading on the bus ride home and discovered, thanks to a LEO investigative reporter, that our commonwealth ranks sixth (from the bottom, not the top) in the percentage of women serving in the state legislature. We share a dismal rate of female representation in our General Assembly with Pennsylvania (surprise), Alabama, South Carolina, Oklahoma and “thank God for” Mississippi.
Think there’s a connection? I can tell you that research overwhelmingly supports the contention that women are the primary health care decision makers in every family. Whether it’s a concern over an earache or a suspicion of addiction, it’s the women who speak up and take action. Interestingly, it’s also women who are the first to read their children’s school report cards.
Would more women in the legislature (there are 21 females and 117 males in the KY General Assembly) make a difference? Would an “F” still be acceptable, as it has been for many years?
I wonder.
Dean L. Johnson, VP, Community Relations
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