[Missouri-l] FW: [leadership] Legislative Alert: Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period

[Peter Altschul]

-----Original Message-----
From: Eric Bridges [mailto:ebridges at acb.org] 
Sent: Thursday, April 16, 2009 3:16 PM
To: leadership at acb.org
Subject: [leadership] Legislative Alert: Ending the Medicare Disability
Waiting Period

Recently S.700 and   its companion H.R.1708 have been introduced in United
States Congress. These identical peaces of legislation are  entitled,
Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2009. Senator Jeff
Bingaman (D-NM) and Rep. Gene Green (D-TX) are the chief sponsors of the
legislation in each body.     

 

Nearly 40 percent of people with disabilities are 

without health insurance coverage at some point during their wait for
Medicare; 24 percent have no 

health insurance during this entire period.  This legislation will phase-out
the 

waiting period for all people with disabilities over ten years, while
immediately eliminating the waiting 

period for people with life-threatening conditions. 

The waiting period forces people with severe disabilities to endure two
years, during which  treatment and care of their condition are put at risk. 

Late last year ACB joined the Coalition to End the Two-Year Wait for
Medicare with the hope of having this very legislation reintroduced and
included in the Obama administration's healthcare reform package. It is our
understanding that including this language as part of comprehensive
legislation   is being discussed. There are currently 3 cosponsors of the
legislation in the Senate and 31 in the House of Representatives. The list
of cosponsors is included beneath this message. We encourage affiliates to
contact their members to request support for ending this unjustified waiting
period.  If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact
me. 

 

Eric 

   

Senate Cosponsors

Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) 

Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)

Sen. Susan Collins (R-MN)

 

House Cosponsors

Neil Abercrombie (D-HI) 

Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) 

Sanford Bishop (D-GA)

Mary Bono (R-CA) 

Rick Boucher (D-VA) 

Bruce Braley (D-IA) 

Michael Castle (R-DE)

Peter Defazio (D-OR) 

Rosa Delauro (D-CT) 

Michael Doyle (D-PA)

Eliot Engel (D-NY)

Barney Frank (D-MA) 

Rodney Frelinghuysen (D-NJ)

Rush Holt (D-NJ) 

Steve Kagen (D-WI) 

Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) 

Carolyn Kilpatrick (D-MI) 

Mary   Kilroy (D-OH)

John Lewis (D-GA) 

Jim McDermott (D-WA)  

Christopher Murphy (D-CT) 

John Olver (D-MA) 

Ron Paul (RTX) 

Todd Platts (R-PA)

Tim Ryan (D-OH)

Janice Schakowsky (D-IL) 

Christopher Smith ( R-NJ) 

Lee Terry (R-NE) 

John Tierney (D-MA) 

Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) 

John Yarmuth (D-KY) 

 

 

 

 

  

Eric Bridges

Director of Advocacy and Governmental Affairs

American Council of the Blind

2200 Wilson Blvd. Suite 650

Arlington, VA 22201 

Phone: (202) 467-5081

Fax: (703) 465-5085

 


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