Geduldig v. Aiello

This decision, excluding "normal pregnancy" from medical coverage, left women without pregnancy problems in an intolerable financial bind. In 1978, Congress finally passed an act to cover problem-free pregnancies and deliveries for women who were otherwise covered for medical disabilities.

In the 1940s, California created an Unemployment Compensation Disability Fund to provide benefits to workers temporarily disabled by injuries or illnesses not covered by workers' compensation. California employees contributed one percent of their salaries to the fund, up to an annual maximum of 85 dollars. In the 1970s, four women who had contributed the required percentages of their salaries to the fund, sued when they found that the fund excluded pregnancy-related disabilities from coverage.