Leadership and Executive Development for women of all races, cultures and backgrounds
Issue link: https://diversitywoman.epubxp.com/i/510478
d i v e r s i t y w o m a n . c o m S u m m e r 2 0 1 5 D I V E R S I T Y W O M A N 13 Young Entrepreneur: Kiah Williams K iah Williams, 28, is passionate about making lifesaving medica- tion available to everyone who needs it. Today, 50 million Americans skip flling prescriptions because of the expense. At the same time, $5 bil- lion worth of unexpired medications go unused, ending up in landflls or being Upfront > Best Worst Place to work based on earnings and employment opportunities Washington, DC West Virginia Regions for women to work based on em- ployment and earnings Washington, DC Connecticut Maryland Massachusetts New Jersey West Virginia Idaho Louisiana Mississippi Arkansas I t's hard to believe that in 2015 women are still making less than men—just 78 cents on the dollar. Where are the best and worst places for women to work? To find out, the Institute for Women's Policy Research recently published The Status of Women in the States: 2015—Employment and Earnings. "When we looked back at how the states measured up in the past, we found that, despite progress in many parts of the country, women's status on employment and earnings either worsened or stalled in nearly half of the states in the last decade," says IWPR President Heidi Hartmann, Ph.D. "When half the country is not seeing any gains in women's employ- ment and earnings, it is a concerning prospect for the nation's economy as a whole." Best and Worst Places for Working Women fushed down toilets, thereby contami- nating waterways. To match patients with the drugs they desperately need, Williams and two fellow Stanford University gradu- ates launched the nonproft SIRUM (Supporting Initiatives to Redistribute Unused Medicine), an online platform Lifesaver that facilitates the collection and distri- bution of unopened, unexpired medica- tions from nursing homes, hospitals, and pharmacies. "We currently redistribute $80,000 worth of medications every month," says Williams. A native of West Philadelphia, she now lives in the Bay Area and runs SIRUM out of Silicon Valley. Besides her cofounders, the organization employs two full-time people as well as interns and volunteers. Recently passed Good Samaritan laws, which ofer legal protection to those who help others, are making SIRUM's work possible—and Williams says that work is impacting the country on a massive scale. "I believe health care is a fundamen- tal right, and that health equity sets the stage for reducing inequality," she says. "Health care is a prerequisite for getting out of poverty. Fifty percent of bankruptcies in the United States right now include signifcant medical bills. Tis is a national problem, and access to lifesaving medicine is an important part of that." Next * no offcial stats kept until 1996 ** 2013 data, most recent available Versus