Yesterday, at an Advocacy Day arranged by the Aplastic Anemia & MDS International Foundation (AA&MDSIF), more than 75 people -- aplastic anemia, MDS, and PNH patients, spouses of patients, and other family members -- met with their congressional representatives and senators in a full day of scheduled appointments.
Altogether, they had 84 meetings on a single day! Patients worked in teams, grouped by state, as they went to the offices of representatives from their districts, other districts in their states, or either or both senators from their state. They included patient meetings with the Speaker of the House, members of committees that oversee healthcare, and many other congresspersons whose support and influence could make a difference for families fighting bone marrow failure diseases. As grass roots advocates, these patients and family members showed how strongly they felt and put a human face on the issues involved. One family member drove coast-to-coast across the United States to attend these meetings!
Here's what they asked their elected officials for:
- That the representative co-sponsor the Bone Marrow Failure Disease Research and Treatment Act. This resolution, known as HR 1230, was introduced by Congresswoman Doris Matsui, whose husband Congressman Bob Matsui died of MDS. Patients who met with their senators asked them to introduce a corresponding resolution in the Senate.
- That the representative or senator support continued funding for the Department of Defense bone marrow failure disease research program.
- That their representative or senator support the addition of MDS to the "presumptive list" of diseases resulting from exposure to Agent Orange, so that affected veterans can get the disability benefits they deserve. Because MDS is not on the list vets must "fight the system" individually based on the medical evidence of Agent Orange as a causative factor for MDS. See the MDS, Agent Orange and the VA thread.
They made the case that there is insufficient research into the causes of bone marrow failure diseases, methods of diagnosis, and safe and effective treatments, and that community outreach is needed. These are all features of HR1230. Many patients and their friends and family members have already emailed their congresspersons, but the face-to-face meetings further encourage members of Congress to see and remember the people who struggle against bone marrow failure diseases every day.
We hope to see positive results from the Advocacy Day efforts. Although the number of co-sponsors of HR1230 has grown from 19 to 49 since last year, that may still be an insufficient number to get the resolution to the floor of the House and to a vote, and a similar resolution in the Senate is still needed. Each representative or senator knows the list of people who have already contacted them by email in support of the resolution. It's trivially easy and vitally important to add your own name to that list. To contact your own congressperson about HR1230 visit the AA&MDSIF
Grassroots Action Center.