SEN. LEACH’S FIRST WOMEN’S LECTURE SERIES EVENT A SUCCESS

            BRYN MAWR, February 22 – State Sen. Daylin Leach (D-Delaware/Montgomery) announced the success of his first Women’s Lecture Series panel discussion on eating disorder awareness and health reform held this weekend in Bryn Mawr.

“Shining a light on eating disorders is a topic that many people might shy away from, but it was something that I knew I needed to do,” Leach said. “By bringing this deadly disease out into the open and talking about it in a public forum, we let our friends and neighbors who suffer from it know that there is a support system in place.”

Held at the Bryn Mawr Film Institute, the event featured a screening of the PBS documentary, “Nova: Dying to be Thin” and a panel discussion about Leach’s proposed Senate Bill 1138. Panel members included Leach, Wendy Cramer, MEd and Dr. Kim Johnson, PhD from the Renfrew Center, and a former Renfrew Center patient.

More than 50 people attended the Women’s Lecture Series discussion and Leach hopes that the next event will bring an even larger turnout.

“I was so honored and pleased by the number of people who joined us this weekend and am inspired by the thought of future events,” Leach added. “I hope that the members of the community who joined me will attend more of my panel discussions and will encourage their family and friends to come along.”

S.B. 1138, awaiting consideration in the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee, would provide better access to treatment for the thousands of Pennsylvanians who suffer from eating disorders. Under the bill, Pennsylvania’s health insurers would cover non-hospital, in-patient treatment for eating disorders and the underlying issues that may cause them.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, 1 in 5 American women struggle with an eating disorder, including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge eating. Without treatment, up to 15 percent of individuals diagnosed with an eating disorder will die or suffer from long-term chronic illness as a result.

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