Tomorrow - Saturday - Live webcast for young people living with MS

Join us tomorrow (Saturday, November 3) for our live webcast event, "MS and Your Career."

At 10am pacific, visit www.realtalkrealanswers.com to connect with others living with MS in their 20s and 30s from across the country for a candid conversation about how to integrate your life, your relationships, and your MS. (note: link to webcast will be available on this page a few hours prior to the event)

Simply log on and you will be able to submit questions in "real time" to be answered during the panel discussion. www.realtalkrealanswers.com

New Survey Finds Technology Plays a Critical Role in the Lives of People with MS

According to a new survey released this week in conjunction with the National MS Society's 2007 National Conference, many people living with multiple sclerosis who experience visual, dexterity, and cognitive challenges report that technology plays a vital role in helping them live with the disease. However, relatively few are using the assistive technologies that could help them overcome many of these challenges.

For more information on how people with MS are using technology, visit: https://mymsmyway.com/

Congressional MS Caucus Grows to 53 Members

The new Congressional Multiple Sclerosis Caucus grows every day. To date, 53 members of Congress have joined the MS Caucus — six new members in just the past couple weeks.

Check out the complete list of U.S. Representatives who are leading the MS Caucus in the left column of this blog. See if your member of Congress has joined yet. If your member of Congress has not joined, call and remind them today.

The MS Caucus provides you, as an MS activist, with champions in Congress to count on for leadership and support of MS issues. It will help bolster our advocacy efforts and give us an even more effective presence on Capitol Hill.

New Movie Reminds Us to be Activists for Disability Rights

While serving in Vietnam, a young Army recruit named Richard Pimentel lost his hearing in a bomb blast. When he returned to civilian life, Richard was confronted with his new disability, with the disabilities of many of his fellow veterans, and with the struggles of a new friend living with cerebral palsy.

Richard discovered that the workforce and the community were not friendly to those living with a disability. He fought for change. In the 1970s, Richard became an advocate for disabled veterans ... and then for all people with disabilities, first in his home state of Oregon, and then nationwide. He helped them find jobs, then helped them find their own voices as activists for disability rights. Richard started a movement ... and became known for his landmark efforts on behalf of Americans with disabilities and as an authority on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).


July 26, 2007, marked the 17th anniversary of the ADA. In recent years however, the intent of this law has eroded — often not providing enough protection for individuals with disabilities. Introduced on the anniversary of the ADA, the ADA Restoration Act of 2007 aims to restore the clear and comprehensive national mandate for the elimination of discrimination on the basis of disability.

Join the movement. Help commemorate the anniversary of the ADA by helping restore its primary intent. Ask your U.S. Senators to support people who live with disabilities and become a cosponsor the ADA Restoration Act of 2007. Click here and enter your ZIP code to send a quick email asking for their support.

Music Within, a new movie based on the true story of Richard Pimentel and his fight for disability rights, is coming to select theaters Friday, October 26. Check your local listings for the movie Music Within. Take your friends, family, and colleagues. The story of Richard Pimentel reminds us, as MS activists, of the importance of working for disability rights, raising our voices to help others, and taking our issues to Congress to ask for change.

Support the ADA. Act now and urge your Senators to become a cosponsor of the ADA Restoration Act.

Thank you for being an MS activist. Join the movement at www.nationalMSsociety.org/advocacy

Ask Your Representative to Support Affordable MS Therapies

The cost of biological multiple sclerosis treatments — $16,500 to $29,000 each year — can unfortunately force many people to stop their prescribed therapy because they just cannot afford it. More affordable, generic options for this fast-growing and expensive category of drugs are not yet available. Read or listen to a recent NPR broadcast on this issue. It includes the story of Donna Gosbee of Wyoming who lives with MS and her struggle to afford therapy.

Many people living with MS and other diseases depend on biological drugs to sustain or improve their quality of life. For MS, those therapies include Avonex, Betaseron, Rebif, and Tysabri. Your Representative is on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and reports indicate that members of this Committee will meet on October 31 to discuss the issue. Click here and enter your ZIP code to send a quick email to your Representative today. Tell them your story and the need for affordable MS therapies. Ask them to support the Access to Life-Saving Medicine Act (H.R. 1038).

The U.S. Senate has passed legislation that would establish a course for approving safe, effective, affordable, and comparable versions of biologic therapies for MS and other diseases. Unfortunately, the House still has not yet taken up a similar bill. Members of the House of Representatives will be meeting this month to talk about creating a pathway for the approval of follow-on biological drugs.

It is imperative that the House Energy and Commerce Committee take action on this bill, where Congressman John Dingell (MI) and the rest of the committee will help shape the final legislation. The time for Congress to take action is now. The Access to Life-Saving Medicine Act — introduced by Congressman Henry Waxman (CA) — would provide a statutory pathway for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to review and approve generic biologic therapies.

Biologic (also known as biological or biotech) drugs are produced from living cell cultures rather than synthesized chemically. The generic drugs that are currently available are synthetically exact copies of the brand name original, based on a precise chemical composition. Generic versions of biologic drugs, on the other hand, would need to allow for nuances in the cell cultures while meeting certain parameters that are strict enough to ensure they are just as safe and effective as the originals.

Take a minute to write your Representative today. Ask them to move forward with the Access to Life-Saving Medicine Act (H.R. 1038). Congress can provide the FDA with a pathway for approving safe, effective, and lower-cost versions of biologic drugs. And give people living with MS and other diseases more affordable options for therapy.