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129 People were Arrested at the Capitol Yesterday in an effort to pin down real support for MiCASSA, Money Follows the Person and Real Choice.
Call Senator Grassley's office and tell him it is essential to include MiCASSA (S. 971) and Money Follows the Person (S. 1394) in the hearing.
And tell him that ADAPT representatives need to be part of the hearing!
Senator Charles E Grassley (R) Iowa
202/224-3744
202/224-6020 fax
202/224-4479 TDD
http://grassley.senate.gov/webform.htm
Your call will make a difference.
Yesterday Senator Grassley finally announced the long awaited hearing on the institutional bias in long term care! But deeply disturbing is the fact that the Senator refused to commit to including MiCASSA (S 971) and/or Money Follows the Person (S 1394) in the agenda for the hearing.
Senator Grassley has, for over seven months (since before September of last year), allegedly been working on an alternate bill to S. 1394 (Money Follows the Person) for the Bush Administration. However, although the
Administration professes great enthusiasm and support for the bill and has been promising that this bill was "just about" to be introduced since September, nothing has been forthcoming. Meanwhile Senator Grassley has not signed on to either MiCASSA (S. 971) or Money Follows the Person (S. 1294).
There is a pattern of lip-service and window dressing on the issue of real choice and the institutional bias in long term care. An
announcement -- with great fanfare -- of some fancy sounding initiative, and then little to no real movement.
Since 1990 we have been trying to get this issue addressed in a real way. Since 1997 we have had a bill in Congress to address this issue. For SEVERAL YEARS now we have offered a more conservative first step, and yet there has been stonewalling in response.
In order to confront this pattern, yesterday ADAPT tried to get a commitment from the Senator and the Senate Finance Committee that this hearing would cover MiCASSA and Money Follows the Person. They were met with more stonewalling and finally 129 people were arrested for occupying the Senate Finance Committee room, where they were holding a People's Hearing on the bills and the issue.
People with disabilities have had the carrot of real choice dangled in front of us for over a decade. Even as we make some progress we are told to wait. Be patient. Hold on. People with disabilities (old and young) die, or have their lives stolen away in other ways over and over, year and year, waiting for their time to come. "More important" issues and "better" solutions (that do not address the problem) are continuously put before ours, as those who are locked out of sight and out of mind are told again and again to wait.
Over 690 groups from across the nation, spanning all kinds of disabilities, all age groups, all different aspects of long term care, are signed on as MiCASSA Supporters. The disability community has a united voice. It is time for the lip service to stop and for Congress to listen to the real experts, those who want Real Choice in their lives.
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