I Should Have Been Posting Our Freedom Flyer

Pages 2 and 3 are reversed. Look out for our August edition!
Freedom Flyer 4-11

"Left Out in the Cold" Press Release

On the eve of the second reading of the government’s controversial Welfare Reform Bill, on 9 March, disabled activist Kaliya Franklin stripped off to demonstrate what the result would be for disabled people across the UK if disability benefits are slashed to the bare minimum.

The photo shoot depicts a naked Franklin lying on the sand on a wintry beach, next to her empty wheelchair.

“I was absolutely frozen when I took my clothes off for the photo shoot,” says Franklin, “but it was nothing like as cold I and other disabled people will be if the government removes our essential benefits.”

The Left Out In The Cold awareness-raising campaign is being organised by disability rights group The Broken of Britain, of which Franklin is a founder and director.

Says Franklin, “It’s vital that every able-bodied person remembers they are just an accident or illness away from being disabled themselves. Many people think if they do become disabled that the state will look after them.

“But the fact is that even under current provisions, disability benefits are not enough for disabled people to live on. If the Welfare Reform Bill is passed, the situation will become unimaginably worse.”

In January, Franklin released a video on YouTube that explained how able-bodied people would be in for a major shock if they found themselves needing to apply for disability benefits. The video can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7EXSpmrVMU.

The Broken of Britain group has been campaigning since summer 2010 to raise awareness of the government’s wider anti-disability policies. The group has consistently drawn attention to disabled people being the target of unjust government rhetoric and sham consultations, tabloid slander and political myths.

It says: “We are now the targets of deep and damaging cuts to disability services that are contained in and symbolised by the Welfare Reform Bill. The Bill disguises cuts and changes to a number of benefits, from housing benefit to Income Support that will punish disabled people.”

Notes for editors

1. Kaliya Franklin and other case studies are available for interview.

2. A high resolution version of the campaign photograph is available on request.

3. For more information, contact Rhydian Fôn James at rhydian@thebrokenofbritain.org or 07774021785, or Kaliya Franklin at 07714208602

4. Contribution-related Employment Support Allowance will be restricted to 365 days, meaning that a married claimant would be unable to claim after a year if their spouse works.

5. The Welfare Reform Bill confirms that Disability Living Allowance will be replaced by the Personal Independence Payment which will use unfair assessment and conditions to disqualify 20 per cent of the current DLA caseload.

There is no evidence that supports government’s claims that DLA is “broken” and in need of reform. In fact, most evidence suggests that DLA is an efficient and popular benefit, and this support includes the vast majority of the DWP’s own research.

The inclusion of this benefit change in the Welfare Reform Bill took place before the consultation on DLA reform was completed.

6. Other cuts to disability services not included in the Welfare Reform Bill are:

• Plans to remove security of tenure from social housing tenants, as costly adaptations are a barrier to moving regardless of size of property.

• Many changes to the provision, entitlement to and charges paid for receiving social care and disability services provided by local authorities.

• The Independent Living Fund which provided for the highest level support needs in combination with the local authorities is now to be scrapped without consultation.

• Access to Work reform redefines what it is "reasonable" to expect an employer to provide for disabled staff, meaning it is likely to push many currently employed disabled people out of work and back onto benefits.

7. Disabled people are more likely to live in poverty than any other group in the UK and more likely to be unemployed or in low paid jobs. 60% of those with a work-limiting disability are unemployed, with 25% wanting to work.

Left Out In The Cold by Kaliya Franklin is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at http://thebrokenofbritain.blogspot.com/

Took this straight from Emma's blog. Hope you don't mind!

I'm Disappointed in You Sen Cardin

On Monday I went with 2 other Maryland ADAPTers to a local Senior Center because Sen Cardin, one of Maryland's 2 federal senators, was doing a town hall on health reform. I waited to write about this because I thought, and was told by a member of the County Executive's staff, that full footage of the hr would be available here. Apparently not. Now this post will be briefer then originally intended because it's been so long I can't remember exactly what everyone said.

Basically, Sen Cardin spent most of his time talking about the budget and the fact that the government is about to shut down (see yesterday's post, they're still trying to pass this year's budget and if it doesn't pass soon the whole government will shut down) and how disastrous this will be to seniors. But he did talk some about the health reform. Not at all about long term care, of course, so when my turn to ask a question finally came I stood up in an ADAPT shirt and said

"Can you please talk about efforts to reduce the Medicaid institutional bias so that seniors and people with disabilities, such as myself, can remain in their own homes."

I'm disappointed in you Sen Cardin. I phrased my question in such a way as to make him, and Maryland, look good. I didn't attack him for not supporting the Community Choice Act, but left it open for him to talk about programs such as Money Follows the Person (MFP) and the Community First Choice Option (CFCO, formerly the CLASS Act).

What he basically said was that Medicaid is operated by the states and states can choose to operate home based programs if they want to. What he should have done was talk about the recent expansion of MFP to include 13 more states (now I think we're at 42, correct me if I'm wrong) and the fact that Maryland is an original MFP state. He could have explained what the CFCO is. Maryland has money in next year's budget to explore whether we want to be a CFCO state. Instead he said this isn't a federal issue.

The federal government mandates that they won't help states cover their Medicaid costs unless they cover institutional care. Community services are optional. Community services have been cut every year while in Maryland, nursing facility rates have gone up about 6.6%. It's similar in every state. Making a bigger federal push for home & community based services would change that situation.

This IS a federal issue Sen Cardin.

Deficit Reduction on the Backs of the Most Vulnerable

originally from http://www.americanprogressaction.org/issues/2011/03/pdf/hit_budget_cuts.pdf
hit_budget_cuts

Quote From Some Random Guy

Yesterday I went to Annapolis for the senate hearing on the "Lorraine Sheehan Health & Community Services Act." I can't tell if it went well or not, we shall see. This post isn't really about that.

I got picked up by paratransit where I live and got to Annapolis right about the time I said I needed to be there, however my 5:15 pick up from Annapolis that was supposed to take me to OOO didn't come until after 8. While I was waiting in the lobby of the Miller Senate Office Complex for 3hrs (thank g-d I had brought both my lunch and dinner with me) 2 crowds of people from 2 different events both arrived and left. I got many puzzled looks from people on their way out.

At about 7:30 I even got offered a ride home from some guy. He asked me where I live and I told him the city. He then said he was going my way, he lives in Baltimore. Did I want a ride? A guy I'd never met before...

He then takes out his wallet and is about to show me his business card.

"I work for the Carroll County government," He says. "So you can trust me."

"That's ok," I replied. They said they'd be here about 8."

Since when does working for government make someone more trustworthy?

National Medicaid Budget Cuts News

Maryland ADAPT is currently, as we speak, in Annapolis, our state capital, with our newest member Toni Torso (below) talking to legislature. Check out UpittyCrip for live updates through the next 4hrs.

On the left you see Toni, a quintuple amputee, sitting in her manual chair modeling her purple 3elove zipper hoodie and orange shorts. She is wearing 7 buttons with different disability rights statements.

On the right you see a close up of Toni's MTA Mobility (paratransit) ID. You have to have a photo ID to get into the building of course. Sorry there's glare. The shirt she's wearing in her ID photo (thanks Texas) says "DON'T CUT MY SERVICES"

While you wait to see our news coverage, here are some other Medicaid budget cuts news headlines from around the country sent out by NationalADAPT through Twitter last night.

UKIAH CALIFORNIA FACING DEVASTATING STATE BUDGET CUTS

RALLY IN IDAHO PROTESTS PROPOSED MEDICAID CUTS

IN NEW JERSEY, GOVERNOR CHRISTIE'S BUDGET EXPECTED TO INCLUDE MEDICAID CUTS

White House Federal Disability Budget Fact Sheet

I'm not going to comment because I haven't even read it, but I thought I'd distribute. Maybe I shouldn't, maybe I'm distributing government propaganda, but I'm not capable of creating original content today.

2012 Disability Fact Sheet

Quote From DD Day

I went to "Developmental Disabilities Day at the Legislature" (DD Day for short) today, which is run by the ARC of Maryland. There's a breakfast and briefings on the current situation in the state for those of us needing DD services, and by that I mean services paid for by state Medicaid (medical assistance) dollars and most likely overseen by the Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA). So I was in line at the registration table and a mom comes out to one of the people working registration. She holds out her name tag which is hanging around her neck.

"Do you have another one of these?" She asks. Then she cuts off the person, who is about to ask who's name she's looking for. "No, just the holder," she says. "My daughter would like to chew it."

As the person goes to hand her an empty one, she motions that it would be easier if she also had the string so she could put it around her daughter's neck. Without blinking an eye, a string appears, the empty badge holder is placed in her hand, and the mom walks off.

In my head I chuckled. Most of the time in most of the world a request such as this would be seen as such an oddity, but here today it was a no-brainer easy request to fill. Why can't it always be that easy?

As a Reminder...

that today is the first day of One Month Before Heartbreak, I post The 12 Days of CRIPmas

In Solidarity

FDA ECT Meeting (I almost missed this) & January White House Disability Call

From MindFreedom International:

The US Food & Drug Administration holds a meeting about electroshock device

The US FDA announced that on January 27 and 28, 2011, a US Food & Drug Administration committee will "discuss and make recommendations regarding the possible reclassification of devices indicated for use in electroconvulsive therapy."

what Forum

when Jan 27, 2011 08:00 AM to Jan 28, 2011 06:00 PM

where Gaithersburg, MD

contact name James Engles, FDA

contact phone 301-443-0572 code 3014512513

attendees All are welcome.

US Federal Committee To Have Meeting About Electroshock Devices

Location of FDA meeting:

Hilton Washington DC North/Gaithersburg, Ballroom, 620 Perry Pkwy, Gaithersburg, MD.

More info from FDA web site:

http://www.fda.gov/AdvisoryCommittees/Calendar/ucm234979.htm

Background:

~~~~~

The FDA has appointed an advisory committee to assist it to determine if electroconvulsive therapy (also known as electroshock) devices will be moved from Class III to Class II, or as many have proposed, to require the manufacturers to submit a "Pre-Market Application" which they should have been required to do 35 years ago.

If the Committee agrees to downgrade the risk of ECT to Class II, it will be more readily available, and the manufacturers may never have be required to prove either that it is safe, nor that it is effective.

ECT survivors may briefly speak to the committee in this public meeting to provide their story or perspective on the harms caused to them by ECT.

Communication of long term harms is especially important, as the manufacturuers and ECT advocates are minimizing ECT long term ill effects - such as long term memory loss, as well as long term effect of reducing ability to learn and remember new information.

The FDA states that persons wishing to speak at this important meeting may contact James Engles at James.Engles@fda.hhs.gov. While a deadline of 14 January is listed to ask to speak, the sooner the better.

There will certainly be psychistrists and manufacturers representatives and others claiming ECT is a life saving treatment. The Committee needs to hear from people who know the true risks of electroshock.

From the Whitehouse:

In order to help keep you more informed, we are hosting monthly calls to update you on various disability issues as well as to introduce you to persons who work on disability issues in the federal government.

This call is off the record and not for press purposes.

We strongly urge and ask that you distribute this email broadly to your networks and list serves so that anyone who wants to participate can do so.

Our next call will be Monday, January 10 at 3:00 PM Eastern.

The conference call information is below.

Dial in: (800) 230-1093

Title: Disability Call (use instead of code)

Date of Call: 01/10/2011

Start Time: 3:00 PM Eastern

For live captioning, at time of call, log onto:

http://www.fedrcc.us//Enter.aspx?EventID=1679107&CustomerID=321

Again, please distribute widely.

Announcing One Month Before Heartbreak

From Emma of A Writer in a Wheelchair:

One Month Before Heartbreak is taking place from 14th – 16th January 2011. This is a blog swarm (or blog carnival) style event somewhat similar to Blogging Against Disablism Day (BADD). A Blog swarm is where people come together to post on their own blogs about the same issue and then share the links on a master list.

Drastic cuts have been announced in the UK to help reduce the monetary deficit. The proposed cuts appear to disproportionately target the more vulnerable members of society, including disabled people. When the cuts were first announced the government freely admitted that they hadn’t carried out a full analysis of the likely impact on disabled people.

The cuts include:

• Removing Higher Rate Mobility Allowance from people in care homes, a move which is likely to make many people prisoners in their own homes (and possibly in their bed in some cases as HRM can also be used for specialist powered wheelchairs).

• Changes to the way Disability Living Allowance (DLA) works. One of the proposed changes is that all existing claimants should undergo a medical to ensure people aren’t receiving it when they aren’t entitled. A costly and potentially pointless exercise as medical evidence is needed before DLA can be awarded and some claimants go for medicals anyway. DLA also has one of the lowest fraud rates of all benefits in the UK – I’m not a benefits expert but I have an incurable, lifelong disability – and an indefinite DLA award, I’m probably one of thousands of DLA claimants in similar circumstances. Sending me for a medical would cost a lot of money and achieve nothing that the forms and medical notes my doctors have provided hasn’t already done. All in the name of trying to save the government some money.

• Another change to DLA that is being considered is changing it to something called PIP (Personal Independence Payment). With DLA if you have certain conditions your disability is recognised and you get it automatically. If you are considered terminal there is a fast track system. PIP as it’s been described appears to have neither of those safeties. One of the main things which would be looked at with that would be how well you can use aids and equipment. For example, it’s pretty obvious that a wheelchair user has some mobility problems, if they didn’t they wouldn’t use a chair, after all. But under PIP rules they could be ruled to have no problems with mobility if they can use their wheelchair independently.

• Council funded care has been cut. The Independent Living Fund is ending which could force more people into care homes.. Access to Work has had greater limits placed on what it can provide which will make it harder for disabled people to find work and potentially may mean some disabled people who are working have to stop. Free bus passes are being withdrawn making transport more difficult. We are treated by the government as second class citizens and hate crimes are increasing.

• There are other cuts planned. The 12 Days of Cripmas is a topical take on an old Christmas carol and lists many of them. Chilling but well worth a watch.

The Broken of Britain is a non party political group which was set up by Bendy Girl to help give disabled people a voice in fighting these cuts. Many disabled people and our allies have shared their story, e-mailed their MPs or done whatever they can to help out the cause since it was launched. One Month Before Heartbreak is one of the projects we are doing this year.

As I said above it’s a blog swarm which means people getting together to all blog on a subject or a theme at a specified time. The hope is that by all writing at the same time it raises awareness and makes more of an impact.

The consultation that’s currently ongoing about DLA reform ends on 14th February 2011. Which is Valentines Day, traditionally a day for love but which could severely affect disabled people if DLA reforms aren’t handled correctly. We need to ensure that our voices are heard. We’re holding this event a month before the consultation ends in order to raise awareness of the consultation and give people to chance to respond to it if they wish. Bendy Girl came up with the name One Month Before Heartbreak.

If you want to take part, write about whatever you want. Obviously, it should have something to do with disability and it would be great if you could mention this event and Broken of Britain. You don’t need to write specifically about the DLA consultation and your personal experience. Those are welcome but this isn’t topic specific. You can participate on one of the days or on all of them – it’s up to you.

Nor do you need to write. You can do a video, a recording, write a poem, draw a picture, anything you want! Sharing links and supporting those blogging is also very helpful

I [Emma] plan to make space available on my own blog [A Writer in a Wheelchair] to anyone that doesn’t have somewhere to share and wants it.

You don’t need to be disabled or a carer or come from the UK to take part. For our cause to be successful we need support from the international disabled community and from the non disabled community worldwide.

The full details of One Month Before Heartbreak (as they stand now) are available here

One Month Before Heartbreak

A Broken of Britain

Blogswarm

14th – 16th January 2011

National Call in Day For Complex Rehab Technology February, 16, 2011

Complex Rehab Technology (CRT) products and services include medically necessary, individually configured devices that require evaluation, configuration, fitting, adjustment or programming. They are designed to meet the specific and unique medical, physical, and functional requirements of individuals with complex needs. CRT refers to individually configured manual and power wheelchair systems, adaptive seating and alternative positioning systems and other mobility devices.

We are asking Congress to create a separate CRT benefit category under the Medicare program. This would include the elimination of Medicare's "In the Home" restriction for CRT products. Our objective is to improve access for people of all ages, whether covered by Medicare, Medicaid or private insurance. Click here for additional information.

Call your Members of Congress on February 16th, 2011 and ask them to support legislation to establish a Separate Benefit Category under Medicare for Complex Rehab Technology.

Register today at www.CELAadvocacy.org to receive your National Call-in Day Packet.

US HHS Office Conference Call TOMORROW

In order to help keep disability advocates more informed, the U.S. HHS Office on Disability will, starting in December, host monthly calls to update you on various disability issues as well as to introduce you to persons who work on disability issues in the federal government.

We strongly urge and ask that you distribute this email broadly so that anyone who wants to participate can do so.

Our first call will be this Friday, December 3, at 11:00 AM Eastern. The conference call information is below.

Dial in: (800) 230-1092

Title: Disability Call (use instead of code)

Date of Call: 12/03/10

Start Time: 11:00 AM Eastern

For live captioning, at time of call, log onto:http://www.fedrcc.us//Enter.aspx?EventID=1663465&CustomerID=321

Again, please distribute widely.

JFAAN Organizing Call TOMORROW!

JFAAN Organizer's Forum: Reaching Out to Newly Elected Officials
Tuesday, November 16, 1:00-2:00 pm Eastern Time (10:00-11:00 Pacific)

Speakers:

• Mike Oxford, Executive Director of Topeka Independent Living Resource Center, Co-Founder of Kansas ADAPT, National ADAPT Organizer: Mike has been an active member and organizer in the disability rights movement for the past 25 years. He served on the Board of the National Council on Independent Living (NCIL) for nine years; he is the immediate past president of NCIL. Mike served on the Board of the Disability Rights Center (DRC) of Kansas, the state's Protection and Advocacy organization, and is the Board President of the Atlantis Community in Denver, CO. Mike also served on the Kansas Association of Centers of Independent Living (KACIL) Board of Directors and the Statewide Independent Living Counsel of Kansas (SILCK). Mike is involved in national efforts to promote choice, independence and freedom for people with disabilities through his work with the University of California/San Francisco Personal Assistance Services (PAS) project and by helping to draft language for national personal supports legislation such as the Community Choice Act, formally known as MiCASSA, and the CLASS Act. Recently Mike became involved with the University of Montana Nursing Home Emancipation grant. Mike writes and presents all around the country, offering technical assistance for consumers who are organizing, state agencies that are seeking to support people with disabilities in the community, and community partners who are finding new ways to promote choice, independence and freedom for all people.

• Heidi Siegfried, Esq., Health Policy Director, Center for Independence of the Disabled, New York: Heidi is Project Director of New Yorkers for Accessible Health Coverage; a coalition of organizations serving people with serious illnesses and disabilities and a project of CIDNY. She has served as NYFAHC’s project director for two years monitoring and analyzing trends in federal, state, and city health policy affecting access to care and coverage; writing and presenting testimony, bill memos, and action alerts; and organizing and leading monthly roundtables. She has twenty years of experience in policy analysis, lobbying, and advocacy on behalf of women, children, older adults, and people with disabilities on a wide variety of issues such as: hunger and poverty, rural transportation, work programs, privacy, civil liberties, housing and homelessness, and access to health care. She is a graduate of the State University College of New York at Oneonta and has a Master of Social Work from University of Nebraska and a Juris Doctorate from SUNY at Buffalo School of Law.
  

Questions to be addressed include:

• How do we establish relationships with newly elected officials?
• How can we bring in community members with disabilities to meetings with elected officials?
• How can we use the process of educating new elected officials to organize more people with disabilities?

Call in number: 712-432-0080 code: 193134#.

CART: The call will have real-time captioning (CART)! The website for where you will be able to view the captioning is: http://www.2020captioning.com/livefeed.php?event=AAPD . Thank you to the Center for Disability Rights,Inc. of Rochester, NY for sponsoring the captioning of this call.

Background:

The Justice For All Action Network (JFAAN) Organizing Workgroup hosts these calls the third Tuesday of every month as a resource for disability organizers, in an effort toward building the organizing capacity of the disability community across the country. They generally follow the format of a Welcome followed by 2-3 experts in a given area speaking for 10-20 minutes on their experiences, advice and challenges. The calls conclude with a 20-30 minute question and answer period.

To ask questions via CART: Sign-in to the Chat function on the right side of the transcript and type your question. One of the call facilitators will read out any questions posted there.

Because we want to maximize the generously donated CART services, we will be beginning the call promptly at 1pm and ending the call promptly at 2pm (Eastern). A few other reminders about call etiquette:

• Say your name before each time you speak
• Speak one at a time
• Speak slowly and as clearly as possible

So you can mark your calendars now, Organizer’s Forums are held on the 3rd Tuesday of every month.

2010 Maryland Gubernatorial Candidates Disability Issues Forum Repost

Still plenty of time to book your paratransit ride!

Greetings from Maryland Disabilities Forum:

The Maryland Disabilities Forum is proud to announce that the 2010 Gubernatorial Candidates Forum on Disability Issues will be held on October 11, 2010 at the BWI Marriott Hotel from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

The leading 2010 Gubernatorial Candidates – Governor Martin O’Malley and former Governor Bob Ehrlich have both been invited to participate in the event. Candidates will be asked to address their respective platforms on disability issues, and will also take questions from the audience.

We are asking you as individuals with disabilities, family members and those who care for and about people with disabilities, advocates, community organizations, agencies, and businesses to circulate this notice to anyone who would be interested in attending the event. Attached to this email is a flyer that can be printed and posted, or sent via email with a live link to our website’s pre-registration page. The Gubernatorial Candidates Forum on Disability Issues is a free event, and though it is not required, pre-registration is preferable: http://www.mddforum.org/2010forumregistration.html.

Providing a platform for Marylanders with disabilities to hear from gubernatorial candidates about the policies that affect their lives serves to keep a growing voting population well informed and active in the political process. We encourage all interested parties to attend and to get actively involved in determining who will serve as Maryland’s next Governor.

Don’t forget to register to vote, follow our links below for Voter Registration and Voting Information:

Voter Applications must be postmarked by August 24, 2010 to vote in the Primary Election on September 14th.

Voter Applications must be postmarked by October 12, 2010 to vote in the General Election on November 2nd.

For Voter Application Form Visit: http://www.elections.state.md.us/voter_registration/application.html.

For More Information About Voting Visit: http://www.votesmart.org/voter_registration_resources.php?state_id=MD

2010 Maryland Gubernational Candidates Disability Issues Forum

I will probably repost, but I didn't want this to go to the back of my email inbox and forgotten about

Greetings from Maryland Disabilities Forum:

The Maryland Disabilities Forum is proud to announce that the 2010 Gubernatorial Candidates Forum on Disability Issues will be held on October 11, 2010 at the BWI Marriott Hotel from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

The leading 2010 Gubernatorial Candidates – Governor Martin O’Malley and former Governor Bob Ehrlich have both been invited to participate in the event. Candidates will be asked to address their respective platforms on disability issues, and will also take questions from the audience.

We are asking you as individuals with disabilities, family members and those who care for and about people with disabilities, advocates, community organizations, agencies, and businesses to circulate this notice to anyone who would be interested in attending the event. Attached to this email is a flyer that can be printed and posted, or sent via email with a live link to our website’s pre-registration page. The Gubernatorial Candidates Forum on Disability Issues is a free event, and though it is not required, pre-registration is preferable: http://www.mddforum.org/2010forumregistration.html.

Providing a platform for Marylanders with disabilities to hear from gubernatorial candidates about the policies that affect their lives serves to keep a growing voting population well informed and active in the political process. We encourage all interested parties to attend and to get actively involved in determining who will serve as Maryland’s next Governor.

Don’t forget to register to vote, follow our links below for Voter Registration and Voting Information:

Voter Applications must be postmarked by August 24, 2010 to vote in the Primary Election on September 14th.

Voter Applications must be postmarked by October 12, 2010 to vote in the General Election on November 2nd.

For Voter Application Form Visit: http://www.elections.state.md.us/voter_registration/application.html.

For More Information About Voting Visit: http://www.votesmart.org/voter_registration_resources.php?state_id=MD

Fact Sheet on The Lorraine Sheehan Health and Community Services Act of 2010

I've been meaning to post facts about the alcohol tax increase bill making its way through the Maryland legislature and it just dawned on me that I could upload this word doc onto my blog through scribd. Feel free to print and distribute. The number of organizations involved is WAY out of date. my friend tells me that the list is now over 70.

FYI the hearing dates are Wednesday, March 10th at 1pm in the Miller Senate Office Building, 3 West Wing 11 Bladen St., Annapolis MD 21401 and Thursday, March 11th at 1pm in the House Office Building, Room 131 6 Bladen St., Annapolis, MD 21401

Please comment here if you would like more info.

Fact Sheet - Feb 5 2010

NCADD Poll Release

Poll Memo Alcohol Tax 3.1.10

Screw you WBAL!

I don't own a TV so last night I went online to check out the predicted snow fall for today (seriously, 80in isn't enough for a winter?) in the hopes that it won't impact my trip to Annapolis for a bunch of budget hearings, and found a video featured lower down on the main page of the local NBC station, Coming to Terms with Depression. Hmmm... I thought, and clicked. The segment was an interview with author/blogger Therese Borchard who just released a book that has the same title as her blog, Beyond Blue: Surviving Depression & Anxiety and Making the Best of Bad Genes. I so have to order this book. It sounds like a keeper. And yes reporter, back to back blizzards CAN impact the "winter blues." Everyone that made it to OOO on Friday was really feeling it, including me.

WBAL, why won't you allow me to embed your video so that I can share it with the world? And WBAL, why won't you provide a transcript of your video below it? You're discriminating against Deaf/HOH viewers.

I will begrudgingly post the link to the video as I think the interview is great and could help some readers. http://www.wbaltv.com/video/22562424/

I did a youtube search in the hopes that some viewer uploaded the interview there, but nope. Here is another interview segment from some other station.

Search Therese Borchard on youtube. She has A LOT of GREAT videos on there that she shot in front of her fireplace. My next few posts will be my comments on some of them.

A Bit on Action Annapolis from OOO & MDLC

Action Annapolis 2010 was a Huge Success!

Thank you to all who attended Action Annapolis! Your efforts in participating during the event and meeting with your legislators made this year’s event a huge success. Even if you did not attend, you are welcome and encouraged to get involved in other ways, as discussed below.

We were able to increase the attendance from last year’s 80 attendees to more than 130 attendees. Consumers & advocates from all over Maryland traveled to the event, including areas in Anne Arundel County, Baltimore County & City, Cecil County, Frederick County, Harford County, Howard County, Montgomery County, St. Mary’s County, and the Eastern Shore.

Everyone who visited their legislators did a great job in discussing the Mental Hygiene Administration’s Budget for FY 2011 and requesting that no cuts be made to the proposed budget.

If anyone is interested in attending and observing the MHA Budget Hearings, they will occur in Annapolis on Thursday, February 11^th and Monday, February 15^th. Details and specific information about the hearing dates will follow.

If you are interested in providing oral testimony during those hearings, please comment here so I can forward to the appropriate people as soon as possible so that they can coordinate testimony.

If you are interested in submitting written testimony, please see the sample letter below:

*Sample Letter*

You should write 2 letters: one to the Chair of the House Subcommittee and one to the Chair of the Senate Subcommittee

The Honorable Mary-Dulany James

Chair, Health & Human Resources Subcommittee

House Office Building, Room 404
6 Bladen St., Annapolis, MD 21401

Re: Requesting No Cuts to Community Mental Health Services

Dear Delegate James:

• First say: “I am writing this letter as a mental health consumer/advocate/family member. I am requesting that no cuts be made to the FY 2011 Mental Hygiene Administration’s proposed budget. If cuts must be made, then please make cuts to MHA inpatient facilities instead of community services . . .”

• Then, explain why mental health community services are important. Talk about your personal experiences receiving mental health community services. For example, you can discuss how these community services are recovery-oriented. You can also mention how essential/important community services are to your or your family member’s recovery. If you or your friend/family member experienced difficulty obtaining community services, you can talk about how under-funded they are now and how important it is that more funding is not cut from these vital and scarce community mental health services.

• If you are recommending that funding for MHA inpatient facilities should be cut over community services, you can talk about your or your friend’s/family member’s personal experiences in psychiatric facilities. If you were treated poorly in state facilities or if your rights were violated, etc., you can speak specifically about your experiences in these facilities and how inpatient facilities do not promote recovery.

Sincerely,

(your name)

(your address)

The second letter should be addressed to:

The Honorable Edward J. Kasemeyer

Chair, Health, Education & Human Resources Subcommittee

Miller Senate Office Building, 3 West Wing
11 Bladen St., Annapolis, MD 21401

Re: Requesting No Cuts to Community Mental Health Services

Dear Senator Kasemeyer:

(same as above)

A Legislative Alert From MDLC

Sorry I took so long to post.

LEGISLATIVE ALERT

Senate Bill 28 - Election Law - Voter Qualifications - Individuals Under Guardianship for Mental Disability

Did you know that under Maryland law an individual who is under guardianship for a mental disability is NOT eligible to register to vote?

Senate Bill 28 strikes the language that bans a person under guardianship from voting. This is a great step in making sure that Maryland does not exclude an entire group of individuals with disabilities from the voting process.

• In 2001, a federal district court struck down as unconstitutional Maine’s prohibition on voting by anyone under guardianship by reason of mental illness. Since that decision, several states have corrected their election law language that bars individuals with disabilities from voting. In fact, there are ten additional states that do not have any voting competency standard including Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Vermont.

• In 2006, the Governor’s Transition Election Work Group recommended that Maryland correct the election law language that broadly denies this specific group of individuals with disabilities the right to vote. The American Bar Association has made a similar recommendation for states whose statutes exclude persons with disabilities from voting on the basis of guardianship and election laws.

• In November 2009, the Maryland Department of Legislative Services issued a report that highlighted the possible constitutional and federal law challenges to laws similar to Maryland’s. The report also noted the conflict in Maryland’s law which in one provision states that guardianship does not modify any civil right of the individual unless the court so orders, yet in another provision states that a person loses the right to vote automatically upon the appointment of a guardian.

It is time for Maryland to address the exclusion of individuals under guardianship from exercising the fundamental right to vote.

Please consider supporting SB 28. Come and testify and show your support or consider submitting written testimony In addition, if you know someone who is not able to vote because of guardianship and would like to testify please let us know.

Hearing Date: Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 1 pm

Where: Senate Education Health and Environmental Affairs Committee

Thank you for your support.