Anne-Marie

West Chester, Pennsylvania

When Anne-Marie’s sister, Joanne, was unexpectedly diagnosed with terminal cancer and needed around-the-clock care, Anne-Marie immediately applied for family leave. “I was denied since Joanne was a sibling and not considered family under the definition in the FMLA,” she said. Anne-Marie had to leave her job of 17 years to help care for her sister until she passed away. “I often think, Who would have taken care of Joanne if I did not sacrifice my livelihood and my job?” Anne-Marie has been working for years, with support from cancer groups and the Disability Rights Legal Center, to change Pennsylvania’s family leave law to expand the definition of family. The bill is named “Joanne’s Law.”