U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut and U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York have introduced legislation to create a national program that allows people to receive a portion of their pay when they are on family or medical leave from work. The Family and Medical Insurance Leave Act, also known as the FAMILY Act, would permit workers to receive 66 percent of their monthly wages, up to a capped amount, when they take off time to care for a family member with a health condition, such as cancer, for their own illness, for the birth or adoption of a child and for certain situations related to military caregiving or leave.
