Western PA ADAPT

Representative Glenn Thompson Signs On

PA ADAPT attended a meeting with US Representative Glenn Thompson at his DC office in early September to ask him to sign on to the Community Choice Act (CCA). Representative Thompson was one of two Pennsylvania Legislators who had not signed onto the bill (HR 1670).

Representative Thompson promised to read the bill, and said he believes that all 50 states should have a mandate to provide community care instead of institutionalized care.

Representative Thompson has joined 116 other Representatives as a cosponsor of CCA on Wednesday, October 21, 2009. Please call his DC office at (202) 225-5121 and thank him for supporting real choice for people with disabilities to live in their own homes.

A Critical Moment in Health Care Reform

With chances of the CCA successfully being passed being slim, ADAPT has been working to have the Community First Choice (CFC) Option included in health reform legislation. The CFC Option would get the key provisions of the CCA into health reform. The option would encourage states to provide Medicaid home and community based attendant services (rather than require them as the original CCA would do).

On Tuesday, September 22, 2009, the CFC Option was incorporated into the Senate Finance Committee bill.

Senators are meeting TODAY to merge the Finance and HELP Committee health reform bills. They will be making decisions on whether to keep the CFC Option in the combined bill. The merged bill may go to the Senate floor to be debated as early as next week.

Please take Action now! THIS IS URGENT!

Contact both of your Senators’ offices today and ask for their support. You may call toll-free (thanks to Families USA): 1-800-828-0498 or use the Capitol switchboard: 202-224-3121.

PA ADAPT members from Western Pennsylvania visited State Senator Bob Robbins’ office in Greenville, PA on September 30, 2009 to ask him to right the wrongs he’s done to the disabled community by supporting budget cuts which will force more disabled people out of their homes and into nursing homes.

During a visit to Senator Robbins Harrisburg office in June, 2009, PA ADAPT activists were asked to leave his office and not return.

Robbins supported the cuts to vital human service programs that were established in SB 850 back in May, saying that the bill was fair and that cuts had to be made. When Robbins voiced his support for the cuts, he was asked if “he had any problem sentencing these people to death?”

Forcing people out of their homes and into nursing homes would undoubtedly lead to death for some of these individuals. Throwing them into a nursing home would preclude them from getting the level of care that they need to live.

Our Legislators need to ponder the long term effects that their political dealings have on the lives of real people. Throwing taxpaying citizens out for pointing out the potential results of morally irresponsible budget cuts is wrong.

In Greeneville, the PA ADAPT activists asked for an apology from Senator Robbins for throwing them out and demanded that he pledge not to vote for and budget agreement that does not maintain level funding equal to last year’s budget for vital human service programs. In addition, the activists called on Robbins to help end the recently established waiting lists for the OBRA Waiver and Act 150.

The activists knew that Robbins would not be in Greenville. At first his staff said that Robbins would not be available all day for any phone conversation. After the press was called in to get the group’s message out to his constituents, a call was quickly arranged between Robbins and one of the activists who live in Robbins’ district.

Robbins gave a drawn out account of the history of the budget impasse. He said that he has always been supportive of the disabled and their home care. PA ADAPT disputes this. Robbins and other Republican Senators often attempt to cut funding for people who need the services the most.

Robbins declined to apologize for asking PA ADAPT to leave his office in June.

Later on Mike Hengst, a Robbins staffer in Harrisburg spoke with individuals from the group regarding the budget issues. The conference call system at Robbins’ office was conveniently broken, preventing a conversation with the entire group.

The activists asked for a letter signed by Robbins pledging that he would not support any cuts to vital human services programs. Hengst promised to speak to the Senator about drafting a letter.

Will PA ADAPT get such a letter? Probably not!

Robbins, however, definitely knows PA ADAPT is watching him. He hasn’t seen the last of PA ADAPT.

You can view pictures of this action in the Western PA ADAPT Group Photo Album on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=99551317361#/photo_search.php?oid=99551317361&view=all