20 Senators have Signed on to Support Multiple Sclerosis Research Funding

Senators are signing on to a letter requesting that $15 million be provided for multiple sclerosis research through the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP). This Dear Colleague letter was circulated in the Senate by Senators Sherrod Brown (OH) and Jim Bunning (KY).

If your Senator is not the list, click here to send a reminder.

Dear Colleague Signers as of April 2, 2008

• Daniel Akaka (HI)
• Jeff Bingaman (NM)
• Barbara Boxer (CA)
• Sherrod Brown (OH)
• Jim Bunning (KY)
• Robert Casey (PA)
• Richard Durbin (IL)
• Edward Kennedy (MA)
• John Kerry (MA)
• Amy Klobuchar (MN)
• Frank Lautenberg (NJ)
• Jack Reed (RI)
• Bernard Sanders (VT)
• Chuck Schumer (NY)
• Olympia Snowe (ME)
• Arlen Specter (PA)
• Debbie Stabenow (MI)
• John Warner (VA)
• Sheldon Whitehouse (RI)
• Ron Wyden (OR)

Ask Your U.S. Senator to Support $15 Million for MS Research

More than 60 members of the House of Representatives signed on in support of an increased investment of $15 million for multiple sclerosis research. Thank you. We can keep this effort moving forward. Now it needs support in the Senate.

Take Action Today

• Call your Senator's Washington, D.C. or district office to talk about this issue. Call the Capitol switchboard at 1-800-828-0498 to be connected.
• Make an appointment to visit with your Senator or their staff in the district during the March 17-28 recess.
• Attend a community or town hall meeting. Call the district office for a schedule.

For your Senator's contact information, visit www.senate.gov.


You can use these talking points and background when you speak with your Senator:

• A Dear Colleague letter is being circulated in the House by Senators Sherrod Brown and Jim Bunning. The letter requests that $15 million be provided for multiple sclerosis research through the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs.
• Please have Senator ____ sign on the letter by contacting Senator Brown or Bunning. As a constituent and an MS activist, I encourage your support of this investment in MS research.
• [Share how MS has impacted you personally]
• Many U.S. veterans have stories and symptoms of multiple sclerosis. Preliminary evidence suggests that Gulf War veterans could have an increased risk.
• A study found an unexpected, doubling of MS between 1993 and 2000 in Kuwait, which suggests a potential environmental trigger for MS because of exposure to neurotoxins such as burning oil fields and poison gases.
• More than 25,000 veterans being treated in the VHA are living with a diagnosis of MS. A recent study in the Annals of Neurology identified more than 5,000 cases of MS among U.S. veterans that were deemed "service-connected."
• MS is a chronic, often disabling disease of the central nervous system and is generally diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, the prime of life. The cause of MS is still unknown, the symptoms are unpredictable, and there is no cure.

Now is the time to pursue MS research in the CDMRP for fiscal year 2009. This program is funded annually through the Department of Defense (DoD) appropriations bill. Last year, your efforts influenced Congress to include MS and for the first time it became one of the areas eligible to compete for research funds through this program. We can build on this success and secure specific funding for MS research. This research would not only benefit our veterans, but would help move us closer to a world free of MS. Click here for more information on the federal grant money newly available for MS researchers.

63 House Members Sign On to Support Multiple Sclerosis Research

63 members of the House of Representatives signed on to a letter requesting that $15 million be provided for multiple sclerosis research through the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP). This Dear Colleague letter was circulated in the House by Congressmen Russ Carnahan (D-MO) and Michael Burgess, M.D. (R-TX).

This is tremendous support that resulted from your email messages and from the attention brought by the veterans and experts who shared their stories at the recent Congressional briefing.

If your representative is on the list, thank them for their support. Call 1-800-828-0498 to be connected.

Dear Colleague Signers as of March 17, 2008

• Tammy Baldwin, (WI-2)
• Howard Berman, (CA-28)
• Leonard Boswell, (IA-3)
• Nancy Boyda, (KS-2)
• Michael Burgess, (TX-26)
• Lois Capps, (CA-23)
• Russ Carnahan, (MO-3)
• Christopher Carney, (PA-10)
• Susan Davis, (CA-53)
• Bill Delahunt, (MA-10)
• Vernon Ehlers, (MI-3)
• Keith Ellison, (MN-5)
• Philip English, (PA-3)
• Bob Filner, (CA-51)
• Vito Fossella, (NY-13)
• Barney Frank, (MA-4)
• Virgil Goode Jr., (VA-5)
• Bart Gordon, (TN-6)
• Ruben Hinojosa, (TX-15)
• Tim Holden, (PA-17)
• Hank Johnson, (GA-4)
• Patrick Kennedy, (RI-1)
• Peter King, (NY-3)
• Dennis Kucinich, (OH-10)
• James Langevin, (RI-2)
• Sander Levin, (MI-12)
• John Lewis, (GA-5)
• Frank LoBiondo, (NJ-2)
• Edward Markey, (MA-7)
• Jim Marshall, (GA-8)
• Carolyn McCarthy, (NY-4)
• Jim McDermott, (WA-7)
• Brad Miller, (NC-13)
• Harry Mitchell, (AZ-5)
• Dennis Moore, (KS-3)
• Tim Murphy, (PA-18)
• Bill Pascrell Jr., (NJ-8)
• Ron Paul, (TX-14)
• Collin Peterson, (MN-7)
• Nick Rahall II, (WV-3)
• Todd Russell Platts, (PA-19)
• Rick Renzi, (AZ-1)
• Tom Reynolds, (NY-26)
• Peter Roskam, (IL-6)
• Bobby Rush, (IL-1)
• Linda Sanchez, (CA-39)
• Janice Schakowsky, (IL-9)
• Debbie Wasserman Schultz, (FL-20)
• Allyson Schwartz, (PA-13)
• David Scott, (GA-13)
• Pete Sessions, (TX-32)
• Christopher Shays, (CT-4)
• Louise McIntosh Slaughter, (NY-28)
• Vic Snyder, (AR-2)
• John Tierney, (MA-6)
• Edolphus Towns, (NY-10)
• Fred Upton, (MI-6)
• Henry Waxman, (CA-30)
• Peter Welch, (VT-At Large)
• Robert Wexler, (FL-19)
• Robert Wittman, (VA-1)
• David Wu, (OR-1)
• John Yarmuth, (KY-3)

MS Activist Talks with President Bill Clinton

MS activist Madison Timmons met former President Bill Clinton before a recent event in Amarillo. Madison was able to get a few minutes of face time to discuss the President's views on stem cell research and respite care. Madison is with the Lone Star Chapter.

DePaul University study of costs and benefits of employing people with disabilities finds few risks to employers

Press Release: Groundbreaking study commissioned by the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce contradicts common misperceptions among employers

A study conducted by a team of researchers at DePaul University found that employees with disabilities from the healthcare, retail and hospitality sectors in the region were just as dependable and productive as employees without disabilities. In addition, accommodation costs associated with workers with disabilities were often minimal and well worth the expense. First envisioned during Mayor Daley’s Task Force on Employment of People with Disabilities between 2002 and 2005, this study was commissioned by the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce’s disabilityworks initiative, and made possible through a grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. A subsequent financial contribution was made by the Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities.

“We’ve learned that employees with disabilities are working in senior level positions, are pharmacists, nurses, managers of retail stores and work at all levels of jobs just like nondisabled workers. In the not so distant future, it will be increasingly important to recruit talent from this community as the workforce continues to evolve," said disabilityworks Executive Director Karen McCulloh.

Over the course of the three-year study, researchers worked with 25 businesses in the Chicago region that were involved as advisors, focus group participants, and sites for the collection of the cost-benefit data. To view the complete research results, visit http://www.disabilityworks.org/.