Disability Rights Action Alert for May 13 National Call Day

Disability rights groups have called a National Call-In Day for tomorrow, May 13. It's in support of the Senate Finance Committee's report on health care reform, released only yesterday.

This report offers major support for our children with disabilities. It expands the medicaid waiver programs, designed to provide the supports needed to keep our kids home with their families, eliminates the waiver program waiting lists that plague many states, eases the medical requirements for entry into the medicaid waiver programs, and increases the FMAP (Federal matching funds) by 1%.

There are other benefits for our kids, but these are the ones that, as a parent, give me the most hope for my daughter's future.

The May 13 National Call-In to the Senate has been announced by the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities. Disability rights groups around the country are spreading the news. The CCD has even provided an example script for call-ins, but if we are going to call as the parents of children with disabilities (and I think we need our voices heard), the script needs to be altered a bit.

Here is the entire report that was released yesterday.

The section on long-term care and the Medicaid HCBS (Home and Community Based Supports) waiver programs begins on page 49.

Please participate in tomorrow's call-in. It could have a tremendous impact on our children's future.

The procedure for tomorrow is:

When: Wednesday, May 13 (Between 8AM and 6PM EDT)
Call-In Number: 1-866-459-9232 (Toll Free)

You will be asked which state you are calling from and will be connected to your Senators’ offices.



Here is the sample script being distributed via the CCD:

Hello (state your name and where you are calling from).

I’m calling to ask the Senator to help make sure long-term services and supports are part of health care reform. Long-term services and supports are essential to the health, well-being, and community participation of individuals with disabilities and seniors. Please ensure long-term services and supports are included in legislation to reform health care. Thank you.




You might want to think about this as an alternative, to reflect our role in the discussions:

Hello my names is {...} and I'm calling from {city} in {state}.

I’m calling to ask the Senator to help make sure long-term services and supports are part of health care reform. I'm the {mother,father,grandmother,etc} of a child with disabilities, and these long-term services and supports are essential to {his/her} civil right to remain with {his/her} family. Please ensure long-term services and supports are included in legislation to reform health care. Thank you.



Here is the list of US senators, and you can sort it by state. http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

Remember, it's best if you call rather than emailing or using their form online. Priority in the senate offices is always given to telephone calls, and you can use the toll free number I listed above to then get transfered to your senator's office.