Georgia's WIN List

Atlanta OB/GYNs Are Targets for Computer Thieves

kgs — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 17:52:42 +0000

In the week since the state association representing obstetricians and gynecologists was burglarized in Gwinnett County on March 17th, at least three individual OB/GYN offices have been broken into, according to a WSB-TV report. Computers stolen from the Atlanta Women’s Health Group offices contained “only” the physicians’ personal information.

Thieves broke into the Georgia OB/GYN Society (GOGS) offices in Suwanee last weekend and stole laptops containing the organization’s membership rolls, and the professional and private information of their individual members.

Benfield Calls It a Career

kgs — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 20:16:14 +0000

By Bobby Tedder
btedder@neighbornewspapers.com

District 85 State Rep. Stephanie Stuckey Benfield, D-Atlanta, is set to conclude a memorable legislative run in the coming weeks.

Benfield announced last month she will finish her term but will not seek re-election, bringing her 14-year legislative career to a close.

The University of Georgia law school alumna will start the next chapter of her professional life as executive director of GreenLaw, a state environmental advocacy organization dedicated to clean air and water.

The self-described optimist reflected on her time in the Georgia House of Representatives, offering a frank assessment of victories large and small, as well as the next chapter of her life.

“I think I’ve been a consensus builder,” said Benfield. “And I try to be inclusive.

“A question I always like to ask is ‘Who’s not at the table?’ Who’s not being represented?”

Benfield’s new post with GreenLaw will primarily entail public speaking engagements and fundraising. Monies raised will facilitate the litigation of cases like that involving the Live Oak landfill in south DeKalb, which GreenLaw attorneys successfully argued should be closed.

“I’ve worked on clean air and clean water in a legislative capacity,” said Benfield, a member of the House natural resources committee during her entire tenure. “Now, I’ll just transition over to the nonprofit sector.”

She leaves behind a General Assembly stint highlighted by contributions to the passage of several pieces of key legislation.

Benfield helped bring about the Georgia Equity in Sports Act, designed to eliminate gender disparities in public school athletic programs more than a decade ago. She also had a hand in the legalization of high-gravity beer in 2004, which has since resulted in a boon for the Georgia craft beer industry.

“Since then, being in the minority party, you have to measure success in the bills you defeat,” said Benfield, pinpointing the recurring rejection of a bill allowing inter-basin water transfers to make up for Atlanta water shortfall to illustrate her point.

District 86 State Rep. Karla Drenner, D-Avondale Estates, lamented Benfield’s departure.

“I’m very sad to see her go,” Drenner said. “She is an outstanding legislator.

“And not only in the sense that she does good policy work,” Drenner said. “She’s also outstanding at constituent work. She genuinely cares about her constituents and has spent an inordinant amount of time attending meetings, helping people and making the world a better place.”

As intense as her call of duty as an elected official was, Benfield acknowledged the pull of of her young family was far too great to maintain her spot in the House.

“Spending time with my children and husband was definitely a big factor in my decision,” Benfield said. “Politics is not always conducive to family life.

“My kids really don’t care that I’m a legislator. They’re at a critical age … they need me.”

OB/GYN Providers Targeted in Burglary

kgs — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 19:54:35 +0000

The state association representing obstetricians and gynecologists practicing in Georgia was robbed over the weekend.

According to reports in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the burglary appeared to be well-planned and targeted computer equipment belonging to the Georgia Obstetrical and Gynecological Society (GOGS). GOGS is a membership organization made up of almost 1,000 OB/GYN providers.

The stolen computers contain sensitive and confidential information, including the organization’s membership rolls and contact information.

Staff and members of GOGS have been vocally opposed to these three controversial proposals during this year’s Georgia General Assembly.

– House Bill 954 would criminalize a woman’s decision to terminate a pregnancy after 20 weeks with few exceptions, would expose physicians to felony convictions and penalties of up to 10 years in prison, and would require public reporting of all terminations. HB954 has already passed the House and on Monday evening passed the Senate Health and Human Services committee by a close voice vote. The bill now goes to the Senate Rules committee, which sets the calendar of bills for debate and vote on the Senate floor. The state legislature works through Thursday of this week for days 35, 36 and 37 of the 40-day session.

– Senate Bill 438 would prohibit state employee health insurance plans from offering coverage for abortion care. SB438 has already passed the Senate and is now under consideration by the House Insurance committee.

– Senate Bill 434, which did not pass the Senate before “crossover day,” would have allowed insurance companies to drop abortion care as a covered medical procedure in certain health plans.

Georgia’s WIN List stands by GOGS, their members, and the many other physicians and specialists who have been fighting for privacy, dignity, quality and choice in women’s health care. These issues have become so politicized in an election year that the bills under consideration will certainly end in a costly and lengthy legal battle – after having been well-used in the November elections, of course.

Want to be a judge?

Jeff R. — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 15:43:12 +0000

If you’re an attorney and have thoughts of becoming a judge in Georgia, you should pencil in time tomorrow for a great event hosted by the Georgia chapter of the American Constitution Society: “How to Become a Judge: Exploring Pathways to the Federal Judiciary.” More information is available here.

Goodbye Stephanie

Jeff R. — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 14:55:07 +0000

Adjusting to a Gold Dome without Representative Stephanie Stuckey Benfield is going to take some getting used to.

Since 1998, she has sustained a vigor rarely seen in the Georgia Legislature. Her energy is infectious and her genuine drive to help the people of Georgia is inspiring.

I know this first-hand because I was fortunate enough to spend the 2011 session working as Stephanie’s Chief of Staff.

I got to know Stephanie in the two years preceding during my work as Elena Parent’s campaign manager. Stephanie was in charge of recruiting for the GA House Democratic Caucus, and Elena was her star recruit. So, Stephanie and I talked a lot in 2009 and even more as Elena’s race heated up in 2010.

Not long after Elena was elected, Stephanie asked me to come work for her during the 2011 Session, and we agreed that I would split my time between she and Elena. This arrangement worked out great.

I had a blast working for Stephanie! She was a fantastic boss and truly an inspiration.

Obviously, there’s a lot of ego in politics, but it was different with Stephanie. There were two specific passion pieces of Legislation she worked on during that session, where she was the main driver behind the work. But she knew in a Republican-dominated House, she could not be the lead name on the bills, if she wanted them to have any chance of success.

But she didn’t care about the credit. She only cared about the end result.

If she needed to be the fifth signer on a bill with four Republicans ahead of her, so the legislation would move, she was totally fine with that. Rare indeed.

Stephanie is everything you want in a Representative, in a boss and in a friend.

I will always treasure my time working with her, and I’m proud to call her my friend.

Stephanie, we all wish you luck at GreenLaw, and you know that whenever you want your name back on a ballot we will all be there to support you.