Webinar Purpose
To help highlight the legislative work that California has done, with the help of tireless advocacy from Senator Portantino and partner organizations such as RESOLVE. Even if you do not live in California, this webinar is a great opportunity to learn lessons from another state’s process to getting fertility preservation coverage passed through SB600. Learn more about the state of legislation in California and updates to fertility preservation access.
Presenters
Joyce Reinecke, Executive Director of the Alliance for Fertility Preservation
Before joining the AFP as its Executive Director, Joyce was a Cancer & Fertility Adviser for the LIVESTRONG Foundation. Prior to that, she served as the Vice President of Programs for Fertile Hope.
Throughout her tenure at Fertile Hope, she worked to expand patient and provider awareness of fertility preservation and of advances in the burgeoning field of oncofertility. She was instrumental in developing groundbreaking programs and services including innovative patient materials, a provider education program and Fertile Hope’s Centers of Excellence program.
Joyce is the co-author of 100 Questions & Answers About Cancer and Fertility as well as several articles on cancer & fertility. Joyce has also given countless presentations to varied audiences across the country, and collaborated with leading professional and patient organizations to promote dialogue and policy change.
Joyce is a long-term survivor of leiomyosarcoma who opted for embryo freezing and surrogacy to create her family. Her personal oncofertility journey informs her professional focus and her commitment as a patient advocate.
Prior to her work at Fertile Hope, Joyce was a trademark attorney in Seattle, WA. Joyce obtained a law degree from Fordham University School of Law, and a B.A. from Occidental College. Joyce currently lives in Lafayette, CA with her husband, John, and their twin daughters, Alexandra and Olivia.
Senator Anthony Portantino
Senator Anthony Portantino represents California’s 25th State Senate District, which stretches along the 210 Freeway from Sunland/Tujunga to Upland. He proudly represents the Rose Bowl, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Griffith Park, Warner Brothers, Disney, Caltech and the Claremont Colleges.
Supporting public education, mental health, and sensible gun control have been priorities for Senator Portantino during his time in office. His accomplishments include increasing funding for special education and the K-12 Local Control Funding Formula. He has authored legislation that created California’s umbilical cord blood collection program, pushed back school start time for middle and high schools, banned the open carry of handguns on Main Street California, raised the purchase age of firearms to 21, and placed the suicide hotline number on student identification cards. In addition, his efforts have created a science fellowship in the State Capitol and established a unique partnership between the University of California and Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
He personally negotiated the end of the 710-freeway tunnel with the Brown administration and authored SB 7, which formally ended the threat of the freeway, protected the non-profits in the corridor, and paved the way for Pasadena to develop the dormant freeway stub.
Senator Portantino currently serves as the Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee and a Select Committee to foster trade between California, Armenia and Artsakh.
Prior to his years as a representative, he spent many years working in film and television production, served on the California Film Commission, and spent nearly eight years on the La Cañada Flintridge City Council, with two terms as Mayor. In 2019, he was awarded the prestigious Ellis Island Award at a ceremony in the historic island’s great hall.
Senator Portantino grew up in New Jersey, where he attended public schools and graduated from Albright College in Reading, Pennsylvania, where he met his future wife, Ellen, a longtime business executive at Warner Brothers and Disney. They have two daughters.
Betsy Campbell, Chief Engagement Officer of RESOLVE
Betsy Campbell is Chief Engagement Officer for RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association, a non-profit organization with the only established, nationwide network mandated to promote reproductive health and to ensure equal access to all family building options for people experiencing infertility or other family building challenges. Betsy oversees RESOLVE’s Access to Care programs, including thousands of volunteer advocates across the country. She guides public policy for RESOLVE and is a recognized leader on insurance coverage, family building legislation, and coalition building. Betsy has 35 years of public affairs and non-profit management experience and received an AB in Psychology from Princeton University. Betsy’s secondary infertility issues were resolved, and her three daughters inspire her to make a difference.