Health Care Reform Update

It is an exciting time in Washington, DC as efforts around comprehensive health care reform continue to move forward in Congress on an aggressive timeline. Legislation is expected to move through Congress by the August recess.

On June 9, Senators Ted Kennedy (MA) and Christopher Dodd (CT) announced the "Affordable Health Choices Act," which is currently being debated in the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. Senator Max Baucus (MT) is leading a bi-partisan effort in the Finance Committee to create a separate but complementary budget neutral health care reform bill.

The House of Representatives is moving health care reform legislation through three committees that have jurisdiction over health issues: Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means; and, Education and Labor. These three committees, or Tri-Committee, released their united health care reform proposal on June 19.

Click here to learn more about the three key legislative proposals in Congress as reported by the Kaiser Family Foundation. Keep in mind these proposals change on a daily basis.

The National MS Society continues our advocacy efforts on health care reform. We are pushing for the inclusion of long-term care provisions, eliminating the Medicare 24 month disability waiting period, and language that would create a clear pathway, free of regulatory hurdles for the approval of generic biologic drugs.

In the News: Obama Sees Progress on Health Care Overhaul

President Barack Obama on Tuesday welcomed progress on health care overhaul as Senate Democrats and the administration closed in on a deal with hospitals to help pay for his proposed expansion of medical coverage to the uninsured.

Several officials said Monday that after talks involving the White House and Sen. Max Baucus, the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, that hospitals were on the verge of agreeing to reduce their anticipated payments from Medicare and Medicaid by about $155 billion over a decade. The government could use the money to help provide health coverage to millions who now lack it....

Obama wants to sign a comprehensive bill in October that would reduce health costs and provide coverage to the nearly 50 million uninsured Americans. The next few weeks are critical in Congress as various committees craft legislation that Democrats hope the House and Senate can vote on before the August recess.

This is an excerpt from a July 7 article by the Associated Press. To read the full article, click here.

In the News: Veterans with MS Gather in PA to Recognize Congressman Murtha

Study shows link between Gulf War service and MS
By Michael Kuhne, Daily American Correspondent
Our Town newspaper
Thursday, July 2, 2009

JOHNSTOWN — Local veterans and members of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society gathered in the Holiday Inn along Market Street Wednesday to recognize U.S. Rep. John Murtha for securing funds for medical research.

Approximately $5 million has been allocated to the society through the U.S. Department of Defense. Murtha secured the funding through the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program.

“We’re here to thank Congressman Murtha and to talk about an important program in achieving funding for medical research,” said David Chatel, executive vice president of advocacy for the organization.

The funding has been the result of efforts by society members and veterans seeking more research to answer questions about the disease, board Chairman Robert Bernstein said.The primary purpose of the event is to understand what MS is, how it affects people and what the society is doing to stop it, he said.

The National Multiple Sclerosis Society attempted to secure an appropriation for research in 2007, but did not. The organization was later recognized by Congress and added to the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program.

“We recognize the tremendous need for MS research,” Pittsburgh division board member Geoff Kelly said. “We understand our activists have a vision of a world without MS; make no mistake, we will get there.”

Tom Caulfield of the Veterans Leadership Program of Western Pennsylvania stated during his speech that many cases of multiple sclerosis among veterans are linked to combat service. This link is most clear among Gulf War veterans and could be due to a neurotoxin, said Caulfield, who donated $500 to the organization.

National Multiple Sclerosis Society vice president of federal government relations Shawn O’Neail said this could be because there is more data available on veterans from the Gulf War than Vietnam War veterans.

O’Neail said a study of Kuwaiti residents shows the number of multiple sclerosis cases doubling in the last six years, indicating a possible environmental trigger for MS.

The event closed with an award ceremony for Murtha’s contribution and a short speech from activist Angela Gorzelsky, who suffers from the disease. Murtha was unable to attend to the event. The award was accepted by the congressman’s district director, Mark Critz.

“Everything we can do comes from everybody out there,” Gorzelsky said. “It really will make a difference.”

More information about the National Multiple Sclerosis Society can be found online at www.nationalMSsociety.org/PAX or by calling 1-800-FIGHT-MS.

In the News: Agreement Reportedly Near on Health Bill

Senate health-care negotiators said yesterday they were closing in on a $1 trillion health-care bill that would be fully funded by tax increases, Medicare cuts and new penalties for employers who do not offer health insurance.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) said members of the panel would consider a menu of policy and financing options over the Fourth of July recess, with the goal of producing a deficit-neutral 10-year bill shortly after Congress returns July 6. "We're getting a lot closer to an agreement," Baucus told reporters after the committee reviewed new Congressional Budget Office cost estimates yesterday....

The Senate health committee is considering a separate reform bill, but the finance version is crucial because it will include provisions to pay for the subsidies and tax incentives that Congress is seeking to expand. Lawmakers have been struggling for weeks to reach agreement on those issues, and an array of contentious proposals remain on the table.

This is an excerpt from a June 26 article in the Washington Post by Shailagh Murray and Lori Montgomery. Read the full article here.

Announcing National MS and Parkinson's Disease Registries Act

Registry Would Collect Accurate MS Data and Risk Factors

Thank you to all MS activists who have been pushing for a national multiple sclerosis registry. Senator Byron Dorgan (ND) on Tuesday introduced legislation that would for the first time establish a national coordinated system to collect and analyze data on multiple sclerosis and Parkinson's disease — the National MS and Parkinson's Disease Registries Act (S. 1273).

Many of you have expressed concern about whether the current numbers accurately reflect the MS community. Ask your Senators to support the MS registry legislation. Click here and enter your ZIP to take action.

This legislation would establish separate registries for MS and Parkinson's disease at the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).The epidemiological data collected and analyzed through the MS registry will provide a foundation for evaluating and understanding MS issues such as geographic clusters of diagnosis, genetic and environmental risk factors, variances in gender ratio, disease burden, and changes in health care practices. Read more here (pdf).

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