JUST IN: Halle Berry And Senators Promote Advancing Menopause Care And Mid-Life Women’s Health Act

5 months ago

Halle Berry and a bipartisan group of Senators promote the Advancing Menopause Care and Mid-Life Women's Health Act.

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Transcript

00:00Good morning.

00:10Well thank you so much to everyone for joining us here today.

00:15You know I first ran for the Senate because I wanted to make sure that we had someone

00:20here actually talking about the issues that matter in women's lives and fighting for the

00:26policies to address them.

00:28When I came here, one of four women senators elected that year, things like childcare and

00:34paid leave, workplace harassment, women's health were an afterthought at best or worst

00:40just ignored.

00:42We've come a long way both in terms of women in Congress and in terms of giving these issues

00:47the attention they deserve.

00:49Look at the lineup behind me today.

00:52But there are still so many ways women's needs are ignored, overlooked, or stigmatized and

00:59menopause is a great example.

01:02After all, menopause is something that every woman goes through as she gets older.

01:07Every single woman.

01:09So why do we have a status quo where no one wants to talk about it?

01:14Why is it so stigmatized?

01:16The bottom line is for too long menopause has been overlooked, under-invested in, and

01:22left behind.

01:24It is well past time to stop treating menopause like some kind of secret and start treating

01:31it like the major mainstream public health issue it is.

01:35That means more federal research and coordination on menopause and other issues related to women's

01:41midlife health, more public awareness and education, improved detection, diagnosis,

01:49and treatment of perimenopause and menopausal symptoms, and better training for our healthcare

01:55providers for a start.

01:57So that's exactly what we did with our new legislation, the Advancing Menopause Care

02:02and Midlife Women's Health Act.

02:05I am so proud to introduce this bill today along with so many other amazing women on

02:11both sides of the aisle because menopause is not a bad word.

02:17It's not something to be ashamed of and it is not something Congress or the federal government

02:23should ignore.

02:25Menopause is something that every woman goes through.

02:27So there's no reason that any woman should feel like she's going through it alone or

02:32like she can't find reliable information or the healthcare answers and options she needs.

02:39And there is no excuse for shortchanging this issue when it comes to federal dollars.

02:44So we're going to be working hard to build support for our legislation, pass it into

02:49law and make menopause a part of the conversation until it finally gets the spotlight and resources

02:57that it needs.

02:58And I'm grateful, really grateful to have an amazing partner working with us on this

03:04with us who is really an expert in the spotlight and a really passionate advocate about this

03:11issue, Halle Berry.

03:13From our conversation about this, I could tell she has the same feeling that always

03:18drives me to fight for change.

03:21If no one else is going to talk about this, I'll get it done myself.

03:25Halle, thank you.

03:29I'm really excited for you to hear from her shortly.

03:32She really is incredible.

03:34And I'm also thrilled to have a really strong showing of women here in the Senate on both

03:39sides of the aisle joining us to introduce this bill today.

03:43I especially want to thank my co-leads in the Senate, Senator Murkowski, Baldwin, Collins,

03:49Klobuchar, and Capito, and our other great sponsors who you'll hear from as well today,

03:55Senators Stabenow, Gillibrand, and Hassan.

03:58These are all women who know how to get things done.

04:01So thank you all so much for being a part of this.

04:04And with that, let me turn it over to my co-lead, Senator Murkowski.

04:07Thank you, Patty.

04:10I want to thank Chairman Murray for her leadership on this initiative.

04:15I think that you and I both kind of came into the conversation with a meeting with Halle

04:22Berry, who came to the Capitol last year, to raise this as an issue.

04:26And it was one of those moments where you just kind of stop and say, why not?

04:34Why haven't we focused more on menopause?

04:37Why has it become this issue that seems to be a little taboo?

04:47Good heavens.

04:49As Chairman Murray has said, this is something that every woman goes through, whether you

04:55have birth children or not birth children, whether you are in a higher income bracket

05:03or the poorest of the poor.

05:06This is a natural body process that one half of humans go through.

05:16So why has it been kind of kept in the back?

05:23Why have we not focused on the research, on the medical training, on all of the attributes

05:30of this?

05:32Why have we not allowed ourselves to really look at the full life spectrum of women?

05:40Most of us get to that point, hopefully, when menopause is that natural part of our life.

05:48So let's not be afraid to talk about it.

05:50Let's not be afraid to put the resources behind better understanding.

05:56Let's talk about it.

05:58And it shouldn't just be the women that are talking about it.

06:01When I mentioned to several of my friends that I was having a press conference this

06:07morning and we're introducing this legislation about menopause, it was like I had said a

06:14word that allowed them to finally speak.

06:17And what I got was, oh my gosh, that would be so great.

06:20You know, my wife is going through menopause, my sister-in-law is going through menopause.

06:24I can't figure out.

06:26They need the information as much as any women out there.

06:30Now, I would just suggest one little thought, that if men went through menopause, we would

06:36have adequately and appropriately funded the research to menopause decades and decades ago.

06:43So there's no time like the present to get moving, to get forward on it.

06:48To be with this strong delegation of women, knowing that we will gain our partners, not

06:54only on a bipartisan basis, but with our male counterparts in the Senate and in the House,

06:59I'm looking forward to that.

07:00But we really got the conversation started with Halle Berry, and I want to recognize her.

07:05But I look forward to working together to make the positive advancements that women need.

07:10All right, who's it for?

07:14Halle Berry.

07:16Hello.

07:17First, let me say how incredibly honored I am to be here.

07:22I never did I think in my lifetime I would be here advocating for something and being

07:28a champion of a cause, especially this one.

07:30But I want to thank Senator Murray.

07:33You were the first person that I met when I came here on this journey.

07:39And Senator Murkowski, thank you for coming on as also a co-lead.

07:44When that happened, I knew right away, oh my God, this is going to be a bipartisan movement

07:49because I can't think of a topic that should not be politicized.

07:54I can't think of an issue that's more of a human rights issue than anything.

07:58So to have support from both sides of the aisle is really important for all women.

08:02I thank everyone else, all of you other beautiful, smart, strong women up here for lending your

08:08support and agreeing to co-lead or co-sponsor because this is probably, I think, in our

08:14lifetime, ladies, one of the most important things that we'll do for ourselves.

08:19And it's really important that we all stand together and lock arms.

08:21And I am beyond honored to be here and be a part of this movement that's happening.

08:27So you guys might say, okay, why me?

08:29Why am I here?

08:30Well, first, I'm here because I'm standing up for myself.

08:36Because I know that when a woman stands up for herself, she stands up for all women.

08:42And all women go through menopause.

08:45And we think that this is something that affects just old women.

08:53Society has told us when we get to be old, we should just sort of putter away.

08:57We should fall off into obscurity and that our issues don't matter.

09:01Well, that's just not true.

09:03I am going to be 58 years old this year, and I have never felt better.

09:07I have never felt more ready for this world.

09:10I am wiser.

09:11I have raised, I'm in the process of raising children.

09:13I started late.

09:14I'm raising children.

09:15And I'm more accomplished than I've ever been.

09:18I've risen to the top of my chosen industry.

09:21It's not time for me to go out to pasture and lay down and die.

09:25Which our society would tell me it's time for me to do.

09:28I want to start a brand new career.

09:30I'm going to start a business that will speak to women in midlife.

09:34Because I want to use the platform that I have to really do real good in life.

09:37Making movies has been fine, and I'm proud of that.

09:40But I really want to, for this next act of my life, really give back in a way that's

09:46substantial.

09:47That will be talked about long after I'm gone.

09:49But it will really make a difference in the life of every woman.

09:53So, one of the things that I've been struggling with, and this is the part of my job in all

09:59of this, is to always keep this issue human.

10:02You all, I'm sure, have heard about my lady part issues.

10:06But menopause is not just about our lady parts.

10:09And so many people think it's just about what happens below our belly button and that's

10:13where our issues are.

10:14That's not true.

10:15One of the most impactful issues that we're facing when we get to midlife is our brain

10:21health.

10:22Because estrogen, we have estrogen receptors in every cell in our body, every organ in

10:27our body.

10:28And when we get to midlife and our estrogen levels start to drop, it affects every part

10:32of our body.

10:33Not just our lady parts that people kind of want to write it off to.

10:37It affects every part of who we are.

10:40So it's really important that we lean into our healthcare in midlife, not lean out.

10:45It's really important that when we go to see our doctors, they have thoughtful conversations,

10:50knowledgeable conversations with us about what's going on with us.

10:53And I'll tell you a quick story, not about my lady parts.

10:55I told that story.

10:56This is another story.

10:57I was at the doctor three days ago and I went in to talk to him about an issue.

11:02And I said to him, you know why I'm having this issue, right?

11:05And he says, yes, I know.

11:07I said, tell me, why am I having this issue?

11:09He said, you tell me why you're having the issue.

11:11I said, no, you tell me why I'm having the issue.

11:14And we went back and forth.

11:15You tell me, you tell me, you tell me.

11:17I finally realized he wasn't going to say it.

11:19So I thought, okay, I have to do what no man can do.

11:22I have to say it.

11:23I said, I'm in menopause, okay, and that's why I'm having this issue.

11:29And he said, oh my God, I could never say that to you.

11:31Look at you.

11:32You don't look like you're in menopause.

11:33I could never say that.

11:34And if I said that to all of my female clients, they'd punch me.

11:37And again, I knew that is why I'm here doing this work, because it has to be de-stigmatized.

11:43The shame has to be taken out of menopause.

11:45We have to talk about this very normal part of our life that happens.

11:50Our doctors can't even say the word to us, let alone walk us through the journey of what

11:55our menopausal years look like, or look like, or our years after that, right?

12:00So when I have these moments, real moments that happen to me, I know that every other

12:05woman around this country are having these real moments as well.

12:08They're lost, they're afraid, they don't have direction, and they need help.

12:12So that's why I'm here.

12:13I'm here as a citizen of the United States, as a woman who is demanding that our government

12:20give us what we need, because we deserve it.

12:22We have been overlooked, we have been discarded for far too long, and I'm so grateful to have

12:29a team of powerful, strong, smart women who are saying, enough is enough, because guess

12:36what?

12:37It's enough.

12:38It's enough.

12:39So thank you so very much for being here and caring about this issue, and I have one

12:44last thing to say, and this is a call of action.

12:47While I'm so grateful for all of the ladies that are here, I'm slightly disappointed that

12:52they're all not here today, because that's just me.

12:55I get my heart set on something, and that's why I wore my orange suit, because I wanted

12:59all of the women to be here today.

13:01And the ones that aren't here yet, I want them to know, we've got work to do.

13:04We know, but I'm coming for you.

13:07We are coming for you.

13:08We are coming for you, and I will not stop until we all stand here, all the women of

13:13the Senate, myself included, I'm not of the Senate, but I'm here with them, and we're

13:17going to stand together, and we're going to fight to get this passed.

13:20And then I want every woman out there, in whatever state you're from, reach out to your

13:25senator, male or female, reach out to your senator, and tell them what you need.

13:30Demand to be heard, because that's one way you stand up, like I'm standing up right here,

13:36you stand up in your own state, and you demand that there's a change, and that money is allocated

13:42for your health, in midlife and beyond.

13:45Thank you.

13:46Thank you very much.

13:49And now I turn this over to Senator Baldwin.

13:51Oh my gosh, Hallie, we couldn't, we couldn't dream of a better champion for this legislation

14:01and this cause.

14:03Good morning everybody.

14:04I want to thank you, Chair Murray, for bringing us all together today, and I also want to

14:10give a shout out to Dr. Pauline Mackey, who I just learned is a Wisconsinite, yay, but

14:18for being such a champion on this important issue.

14:21You know, we don't talk about menopause very often, but we really should.

14:27As you've heard, half of America will experience menopause in their lifetime, with thousands

14:32of women reaching menopause every single day.

14:36Even though menopause and perimenopause impact millions of Americans every year, women have

14:42too often been forced to suffer in silence, with sometimes debilitating symptoms like

14:48hot flashes, sleep loss, mood changes, and joint pain.

14:52In fact, a national survey in the U.S. revealed that four out of every ten women said menopause

14:58symptoms interfered with their work performance or productivity.

15:04For far too long, menopause has been treated as a taboo, or simply written off as a women's

15:11issue.

15:13It's our responsibility to come together and to reverse that stigma to help millions of

15:18women get the care that they deserve.

15:21I am proud to stand with my Democratic and Republican colleagues to introduce this legislation

15:27today and together we can help millions of Americans better understand menopause and

15:33treat their symptoms so that they can confidently enter their next chapter.

15:39And now I want to introduce Senator Capito.

15:44Great to be here.

15:45Thank you for your advocacy.

15:47It's great to be here with so many of my fellow senators.

15:50I think we're proving here that menopause is not a partisan issue, it certainly is a

15:54bipartisan issue.

15:56Senator Baldwin and I are the ranking members, she's the chair of the subcommittee on Labor

16:01H, where a lot of the research, this to me is the most exciting part of what we're talking

16:05about today, is the research that's going to occur at NIH and other places to be able

16:11to answer the questions.

16:12The questions that, quite frankly, the only person I went to to ask was my own mother.

16:18And many of us have relied on our mothers and our sisters to give us a hint, give us

16:23a clue, see where we're headed.

16:25And now we're going to have the opportunity to not only have professionals better trained,

16:30but also have the research that backs up how and where menopause affects people.

16:36Some people it affects a lot, some people it doesn't affect hardly at all.

16:40And so there's a whole spectrum here.

16:42So I'm really excited about what this does and this bill does.

16:46I'm excited about the bipartisanship and we will work on many of our other members to

16:50be here today.

16:51So by taking this effort, I think we're taking a big step to help our fellow females, but

16:56also every family, everybody, really.

16:58This will affect everybody in the end.

17:00And I'm proud to be here today.

17:02I do have to slip out, though, because we have all kinds of committee meetings going

17:05on.

17:06So thank you all for being here and thank you.

17:08Thank you, Shelly.

17:09Oh, and now I forgot my last thing, Senator Klobuchar, my friend.

17:17Thank you.

17:18Thanks so much, Shelly.

17:19Thank you to Tammy and thank you to Senator Murray and Senator Murkowski and Halle Berry.

17:27We're going to match your orange pantsuit, I promise.

17:32This is a moment where we can make talking about menopause cool or at least not hot.

17:38OK, that is our plan.

17:40Y'all saw that new study that came out and that's great.

17:45Just this week.

17:46But when we were just talking about this beforehand for years, there's just confusion.

17:50What should we do?

17:51Is it safe to do this?

17:52Is it safe to do that?

17:53We know that for most women, this starts between the ages of 45 and 55.

17:59It can last for years.

18:02And here we are in 2024 talking about it.

18:05And as Lisa noted, I think if this was happening to men all these years, we would not be out

18:11right here doing this press conference because we would have figured out the treatment.

18:16We would have gotten the facts.

18:17And now it's our time and our moment to get this done.

18:21So I'm going to talk a little bit about my own experience with this, a little different

18:25than but yet similar to many women that I have talked to.

18:28I was diagnosed, as many of you know, a few years ago with stage one, a breast cancer

18:33in 2021.

18:35And for a number of reasons we are not going to get into the surgery and medication triggered

18:40months and months of hot flashes.

18:43And so literally I am going out to the Senate floor, having to give some big speech, listening

18:48to one of our male colleagues who have no idea what is going on.

18:53And I can tell you it is a recipe for hard times and dark thoughts like these guys have

18:58no idea what I'm going through.

19:00And now they're saying that.

19:02Why is he giving this speech?

19:04Why doesn't anyone care?

19:06And so these hot flashes, as noted, can keep you up at night.

19:11They can drive you especially nuts during hot weather, thank you, with lights.

19:15And for cancer patients, especially, there are very limited remedies and including nightly

19:21visits to the freezer.

19:23And by that, I mean, yes, putting your head in the freezer.

19:26At one point, I was doing an interview on antitrust scintillating topic on the Stephen

19:31Colbert show remote with that light like that in my face.

19:36And I had not one, not two, not three, but four hot flashes in the middle of the interview.

19:41The lucky part for me is for some reason, I never anyone could tell except this time,

19:45a very famous person called me and said, what are you doing?

19:49You look just glowing on that interview.

19:52It was just incredible.

19:55So while this is a taboo subject to usually talk to about, you can see there are some

20:00clear advantages from time to time.

20:03And it's easy to laugh, but we know that for so many women, it actually sets them back

20:08so much.

20:09It sets them back each day.

20:10It sets them back in their work lives.

20:12And fortunately, this conversation is now changing in a big, big way.

20:17So people at some point in our lives are going to feel much more free to talk about it to

20:21those male colleagues who are out giving a speech.

20:24And they're going to feel much more free to figure out what is wrong, what can I do, what's

20:28safe for me to do, which has been so confusing for so many women when it comes to hormone

20:34patches and the like.

20:35So I am really excited that we're putting this force and there's nothing that we can't

20:40do when you've got this group gathered on one stage.

20:44So thank you very much.

20:45I look forward to working with my colleagues on this.

20:47Thank you.

20:48And now up, the incredible and the author of the Farm Bill, which is soon going to be

20:53done, shows you can juggle many things at one time, Senator Stabenow.

20:58Thank you, Amy.

21:00Good morning, everyone.

21:01If you take nothing away from this morning, if you are not here as a man or a woman joining

21:08us, Halle Berry is coming for you.

21:11We're looking forward for that.

21:15So thank you to all my colleagues, led by Senator Murray, Senator Murkowski.

21:21And I would just stress a couple of things.

21:25This is a healthcare issue above the neck as well as below the neck.

21:30Back in President Obama's time, he, for the first time, set up what's called the Brain

21:36Initiative at the National Institute of Health to actually research the brain.

21:41We know that at least 30% of the time, a woman going through menopause will go through depression.

21:47It's physiological.

21:50And that institute needs to be researching menopause as part of the Brain Institute.

21:58There are so many ways that we need to lift up women's healthcare, whether you're a pregnant

22:03mom and not getting the care that you need, whether you're a new mom, whether you're going

22:08on in later stages of life or at the end of your life.

22:12This is about healthcare.

22:14And so I'm just very proud to be here with my colleagues to say the word menopause loudly

22:22and proudly.

22:23I was so excited to see they set up a menopause caucus in the U.S. House and colleagues that

22:28are part of that.

22:30This is real.

22:31It's serious.

22:33And as my colleagues have said, if men were affected, there would be a large NIH institute

22:43totally dedicated to every aspect of the effects on men of menopause.

22:50So let's do it.

22:51All right.

22:52Let me turn to Senator Gillibrand.

22:57Thank you.

22:58Thank you so much to these extraordinary women standing with us.

23:00I'm very grateful for Senator Murray and Murkowski for bringing us together.

23:03And thank you to Halle Berry for her passion, for knowing that women in America need a voice

23:09like hers to lift up this issue, to make sure people know what's at stake and to make

23:14sure people understand the unfairness of the lack of research, the lack of dedication in

23:19our medical schools to teaching doctors and OBGYNs about menopause and what the impacts

23:25are for women's health and what the best treatments are to deal with symptoms.

23:30You wouldn't believe it, but for OBGYN residency programs, a recent study shows that only 31

23:37percent of those programs have menopause in the curriculum at all.

23:42That is ridiculous.

23:43As many as 80 percent of OBGYN residents admit they're ill-prepared to discuss menopause

23:51with their patients.

23:53Women's health is human health.

23:55This is fundamental to our survival, fundamental to our well-being, fundamental to our ability

24:01to function in our families, in society, and to be a productive member of our communities.

24:08Menopause can make a huge difference in women's lives and could have a massive influence on

24:12age-related diseases.

24:14But it's one of the most underfunded, undertreated, and underdiagnosed fields of medicine.

24:20In fact, the majority of preclinical biology research studies in aging fail to even consider

24:27menopause.

24:28And we don't even have a clear picture of how menopause affects aging, how it might

24:33affect cardiovascular health, breast cancer, dementia, and mental health.

24:38This has to change.

24:40This is something that we should all believe has to be an imperative for the NIH, for national

24:45research, for our medical professionals, and for our med schools.

24:51I'm very dedicated to this cause since I am well past menopause.

24:55And when I went through my personal symptoms, I had no one to ask.

25:00My doctors were fantastic.

25:02I had women doctors who had already gone through menopause, and they explained everything.

25:07And I just think the rest of the medical field needs to catch up, they need to do their jobs,

25:12and they need to support women.

25:13Our next speaker is Senator Hassan.

25:17Well, thanks so much, Kirsten, and thank you to all of my colleagues here.

25:24And a special thank you to Halle Berry for using your voice to advocate on this issue.

25:30It's really a privilege to be with all of you today.

25:33As you have heard my colleagues and Halle talk about, menopause is one of those words

25:39that nobody wants to say.

25:41It's a natural part of life that no one is used to talking about.

25:46I still find that some of my younger colleagues, whether they are staff, whether they are other

25:53legislators or other political leaders, there sometimes is a woman kind of tiptoeing up

25:58to you saying, have you ever had like hot flashes?

26:03Like I don't know what to do about this.

26:05It is not something we have been talking about, and therefore it is not something that has

26:10been studied, that has been normalized, that has been invested in.

26:14And it's really, really not only long past time that we're introducing this bill, but

26:20exciting that we are.

26:22Despite the fact that half of the population will experience menopause, even in the 21st

26:27century, there is a really clear lack of awareness and public discussion.

26:32And really significant gaps in what we know about menopause.

26:37As Senator Klobuchar mentioned, for about the last 20 years, women have been told based

26:44on a study that I think is about 20 years old, if I'm right, Doctor, that they really

26:48shouldn't use hormone treatment therapy because of the risks involved.

26:55Then I read this article yesterday that says actually that study, done by a well-respected

27:01group, that was pretty wrong.

27:03The design was bad.

27:04People have known the design was bad for a while, but we're finally catching up and the

27:08new research shows that there are really safe options, particularly for younger women who

27:13are beginning menopause.

27:15So we have a lot of work to do.

27:18That's why this bipartisan legislation, which will strengthen federal research and raise

27:23public awareness and expand training, is so important.

27:27I too had women doctors, one of the best pieces of advice that I ever got was find a primary

27:33care physician who is female and about five years older than you are, because she will

27:36have gone through everything else.

27:38And I was very, very lucky to have excellent women physicians.

27:41But that also speaks to the need for full and diverse representation in all professional

27:46fields, especially when it comes to healthcare.

27:50So last thing, if we believe, as we do in the United States of America, in our beloved

27:56democracy, that every single person counts and has full and equal worth, then we have

28:03to make sure that we are investing in healthcare research, treatment, and actual care that

28:10serves every single person so that they can reach their full potential, be full contributors

28:16to our society, and continue to make a difference regardless of the stage of life they're in.

28:22So thank you all very much for being here.

28:24It's now my real honor and pleasure to turn this over to Dr. Mackey.

28:28Doctor?

28:29Good morning, everyone.

28:32I have the tremendous honor of representing the menopause research community.

28:38And on behalf of the community, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, and thank

28:42you, Hallie.

28:43This is nothing short of revolutionary.

28:46I used to be that weird scientist who studied the brain and menopause, and I was kind of

28:50sidelined into, you know, the back area of the NIH and the like, and suddenly there are

28:57hot flash commercials on the Super Bowl.

29:01You know, so what's happening here, right?

29:03Now I got into menopause research not thinking, oh, you know, I went out to get my PhD in

29:08cognitive neuroscience to study menopause, but I got into it because of sex differences

29:14in Alzheimer's disease.

29:16And all of us have someone in our family affected by Alzheimer's disease.

29:20What you may not know is that two-thirds of individuals living with Alzheimer's disease

29:25are female.

29:27So why is that?

29:28Well, one of the many benefits of being female is that we live longer than our male counterparts,

29:35but we're also in a different position because as we age, we not only go through chronologic

29:42aging, we go through hormonal aging.

29:46And that has a very specific effect on our brains.

29:50So we heard about hot flashes, the hallmark symptom of the menopause.

29:55I measure hot flashes in my research studies by hooking women up to monitors that measure

30:00when they sweat.

30:02Last Friday, a woman came into my lab and we looked at her data.

30:06She had 40 hot flashes in one day, 40 hot flashes in one day.

30:14And yes, they are worse if you are being treated for cancer, they're worse if you're black

30:19or brown, and only 20% of women get their symptoms treated.

30:24Now why is that important?

30:26Because our research shows that if you do these fancy brain scans, the more hot flashes

30:31a woman has, the more stroke-like abnormalities we see in her brain, the more her memory is

30:37affected, and the more her memory circuitry is affected.

30:42So what does that mean?

30:44It means that menopause brings her brain to a different state when she's at the age of

30:4960.

30:50She has to build resilience.

30:52So what do we need?

30:53We need to get women the help they need to build the best brains that they can so that

30:59if and when the pathology of Alzheimer's disease begins, they're resilient to it.

31:05And to do that, we need more menopause researchers.

31:09We need more menopause funding.

31:12It just makes sense economically.

31:15So I am so excited, so excited to have this infusion of interest in this topic so that

31:23we can help women lead the best lives they can through a more informed understanding

31:29of menopause.

31:31And with that, I thank you, and I'll turn it back to Senator Murray for the questions.

31:36Thank you so much.

31:38Thank you.

31:39Thank you, Doctor.

31:40Really appreciate your insight.

31:42Thank you to all of our amazing co-sponsors, and especially thank you to Hallie for being

31:46the force behind us that is here today.

31:48This is the beginning, not the end.

31:51This is our start of going out and getting as many co-sponsors as we can on both men

31:57and women, and we are going to get this passed and put it into law and make sure that women

32:02have the research they need, have the public health information they need, and that we

32:06as women in the Senate, along with our help from Hallie and so many others, are going

32:11to change lives for women.

32:12That's our goal today.

32:13So thank you all for being here, and I think I have time for a couple questions.

32:17Yes.

32:18Anybody has any questions specifically?

32:19Yes.

32:20Hi, how are you?

32:21I guess, how do you talk to your leaders and your staff members, and how do you talk to

32:25your co-sponsors and co-leaders?

32:29So, our goal today is to get as many co-sponsors as possible.

32:33You know me, I don't sit around and pretend that this is done.

32:37Now we're going to go out and get co-sponsors, and when we have enough and we know we have

32:40the votes, then we'll bring it to the leader in the Senate.

32:43I know there are a number of colleagues in the House as well who are working on this,

32:47and we will just work as hard as we can until we get it done.

32:54Other questions?

32:55Yes.

32:56I'm wondering if this has anything to do with the March of Women, or if this has anything

33:07to do with the March of Women, or if this has anything to do with menopause?

33:08Has nothing to do with that.

33:09This has to do with the phase of life that women are going through during menopause,

33:13and the fact that we do not have the research, the support, the physicians out there who

33:17can help women through it, and make sure that women are taking the best care of themselves

33:21as they can as they go through menopause.

33:23Yes.

33:2416.

33:25Right now, this minute.

33:26Give us 10 minutes.

33:27We just started.

33:28We just started, so.

33:29All right.

33:30And we haven't even invited the men.

33:31And I bet they'll all say yes the minute we ask.

33:32Will you be on a menopause bill?

33:33Yes, yes.

33:34Of course we'll be on a menopause bill.

33:35All right.

33:36Thank you.

33:37Thank you.

33:38Thank you.

33:39Thank you.

33:40Thank you.

33:41Thank you.

33:42Thank you.

33:43Thank you.

33:44Thank you.

33:45Thank you.

33:47Are you afraid of it?

33:48Yeah.

33:49Are you afraid of this bill?

33:50No, no.

33:51See what I mean?

33:52We'll get there.

33:53Well, again, thank you all so much for being here.

33:55Let's go get this done.

33:56Thank you.

33:57Thank you.

33:58Well said.

33:59Well said.

JUST IN: Halle Berry And Senators Promote Advancing Menopause Care And Mid-Life Women’s Health Act

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