A new mother in Massachusetts will get paid time off to care for her baby, beginning in 2021. A son will get paid time off to care for his ailing parent.

Why is this broad definition [of ‘family’] so important [for paid sick days laws], and whom does it most impact? Well, for starters, lots of folks in the LGBTQ+ population.

One military branch modified their parental leave policy by combining and increasing the current family leave policy late June as one to help new and current members.

Though a majority of Americans support paid family leave (though they may disagree over how to provide it), new research out in time for Father’s Day suggests insufficient paid leave as well as social expectations prevent fathers from caring for their children as much as they’d like.

Parents, clergy and lawmakers participating in the "Think Babies" demonstration in Trenton spoke broadly about the need for more affordable child care and a more generous paid family leave law that would double time off from six weeks to 12 weeks after a child is born or adopted.

With a growing sense that the US is being left behind by a lack of family-friendly policies, and as more evidence shows that there are advantages to families when such programs are in place, there's some movement at the federal and local levels, but states are driving change

The U.S. can't afford outdated policies that reduce the growth of the economy; working mothers can no longer accept a situation that creates stress and leads to lost income.

We are one of the few countries in the world where maternal mortality rates are rising, rather than falling, and black mothers die at three times the rate of white mothers. We are the only high-income country without any provision for paid family and medical leave.

"We want to be the voice for babies that aren't able to speak for themselves," [Jessica] Tolbert said. Like many of the parents at the rally, Tolbert mentioned paid family leave, health care, and affordable childcare as some of the major reasons they had come to lobby members of Congress.

As Americans, we like to think every opportunity should be available to everyone, no matter where you live or who you are. Unfortunately, that's not true when it comes to the supports our country provides for babies.