The Roving Activist’s Blog

I heard the buzz a few days ago from Nick Dupree and others, and couldn’t believe it, so I checked for myself. here’s what I found:

Promote Access to Community Living Services

Too many people who need assistance with activities of every day life are faced with a difficult choice. They can move into a nursing home and face safety and quality of care problems or risk injury or death by staying in the community without adequate services to take care of personal needs. The President believes that more can be done to encourage states to shift more of their services away from institutions and into the community, which is both cost effective and humane.

This is a far cry from what was on his disability policy page even a few short weeks ago. Here is a link that shows the side-by-side comparison:

http://versionista.com/pub/15881/1/14/2:1/

Now, am I gutted? Do I feel betrayed? Hell YES!!! Am I surprised? Hell NO!!! That new statement couldn’t have been more vague if they tried. And given the fact that this was done right after ADAPT hit the White House?!? Yeah, Obama Admin, you’ve shown your true colors!

National Call-In Day - Ensure Long-Term Services and Supports are Included in Healthcare Reform!
Background

In coming weeks, the Senate will finalize legislation to reform America’s health care system.  Now is the time for our country to address the institutional bias in Medicaid.  Long-term services and supports must be included in health care reform.

There is an institutional bias within Medicaid that denies Americans with disabilities an equal choice for home and community services.
Nearly half of all funding for long-term services is provided through Medicaid that requires individuals to impoverish themselves to receive supports.  Hundreds of thousands of individuals with disabilities and their families are on waiting lists for Medicaid home and community-based services.

Proposals exist to help address these issues.  However, they will only be included within healthcare reform legislation if Congress hears from you.

Aging and disability organizations across the country have joined together to host a national call-in day on Wednesday, May 13th.  Please join thousands of others across the country in calling your Senators to tell them how important it is to include long-term services and supports.  Your calls make a difference!

Call-In Information

When: Wednesday, May 13 (Between 8AM and 6PM EDT)

Call-In Number: 1-866-459-9232 (Toll Free)

You will be asked which state you are calling from and will be connected to your Senators’ offices.  Below is a sample script to leave a message.

“Hello.  My name is _________ and I’m calling from (the state you are
from) to ask the Senator to help make sure the Community Choice Act and long-term services and supports are part of health care reform.
Long-term services and supports are essential to the health, well-being, and community participation of individuals with disabilities and seniors.  We must address the institutional bias and give people a REAL CHOICE.  Please ensure that the Community Choice Act and long-term services and supports are included in legislation to reform health care.
Thank you.”

Please, PLEASE call in! When talking to Senator Schumer’s office let it be known that you know that he is on the Senate Finance Committee, which has a lot of say-so in what is going in the health care reform legislation. Tell his office that it is vitally important that, since he is a supporter of the Community Choice Act, that it is included in health care reform!

Well, all 99 ADAPT warriors who were arrested yesterday got back safely, and all of us are here in the cold and rain here in Upper Senate Park where a rally with SEIU, NCIL, and AAPD is going on. Senator Tom Harkin will be here to speak.

We’ll then head to the Capitol to do our scouring of the hill. SEIU folks will be joining us, but the topic that we all will be pushing is the Community Choice Act!!

More on this later!

Word on the street is that a total of 94 ADAPTers were arrested at today’s actions. After the Senate side non-arrestees were reunited with us from the House side, we relaxed with a lunch of the traditional ADAPT steak, aka McDonald’s hamburgers. We then decided that the time had come to take our demands of CCA in health care reform to the Capitol. Many of us who were left crawled up the steps of the United States Capitol. We chanted, “Community Choice Act NOW!” “No reform without CCA!” We unfurled several banners, and made it to the middle of the steps, where there was a chain. We did not go past that. Mike and Cassie made rousing sppeches about why we were there because we were bringing our demand that there be no health care reform without the Community Choice Act!

I must say that it was a VERY powerful sight! Of course, the police moved in quick, and even though we were willing to make a path so that others could enter, they insisted that since were were more than 25 people, and it was a unsanctioned demonstration, we had to leave. They were ready to get the ball rolling for arrests, so after some words to the crowd from Mike Oxford, we lined up and headed back to the hotel.

More later!

We’re out here at New Jersey and Independence, where we took over the intersection.The six teams split into two groups, one taking the intersection closest to the Senate side, and the group that I am in taking over on the House side. Quicker than you could say Free Our People, the cops were on us, the warnings were issued, and the arrests began! I had decided to stay back, since I was one of the 91 from yesterday, so handed out flyers and talked to folk on the street.

For those wondering why we chose where and what, we targeted the entire Congress because passing the Communty Choice Act, and getting long term care into health care reform is quite literally, a matter of life and death!

While my group was swept up practically at the speed of light, arrests are proceeding at a snail’s pace on the Senate side, so those of us who weren’t busted are hanging tight.

Stay tuned!

We’re up and at ‘em again! ADAPT is headed to our target, where we’ll be working to FREE OUR PEOPLE!!!

More when we get there!

As the title says, I, and hundreds of ADAPT folks are chained to the White House fence!
The meeting went terrible. They have no intentions of including long term care in health care reform. They’re all about getting insurance for people, but not freeing people from nursing homes and other institutions. Seems like there’ll be no change during this administration for people with disabilities.

I’ll keep you posted!

We are here at the White House, where some of our folks are meeting with White House staff to let them know that we want health care reform to include the Community Choice Act. Obama says that its time for a change, and he’s right-the institutional prevalent in our long term care systems. Long term care MUST be included in the health care package being hammered out by the administration as we speak, it MUST come in the form of the Community Choice Act!

We’re chanting loud and proud, “Our homes, not nursing homes”.” O-B-A-M-A! We want CCA today!” “Hey hey, ho ho, nursing homes have got to go!”

I’ll keep you posted.

It’s 6:30 am, and I, and several Rochester folks are hanging out, preparing for the day. Other ADAPTers coming down, too. I’m getting psyched! More later.

Well, we’re here in DC! Today is going to be HOT! Right now, I’m about to grab something to eat. I’ll check in later.