Tomorrow morning I get on a bus to head for Olympia for the 2007 Advocacy Conference. I will have the opportunity to meet with my State Representatives to discuss a variety of topics that directly effect people with MS. Some of these topics include Health Care Access & Funding, a Sales Tax exemption for Durable Medical & Mobility Equipment, Medicare Part-D Co-Payment Coverage, Transportation for Persons w/Disabilities, an Accessible Parking Violation Hotline (Mdmhvonpa...you may need to work on this for your state as well, lol), and the Definition of "Disability".

I have to tell you this last one makes me a bit nervous. I for one would like some clarification on this because my thought is that if the Washington State Supreme Court changes the definition of Disability what will that do to the people who are already getting Social Security benefits that need them. Will that have an impact on them? I am really excited to finally talk to someone about Health Care Access & Funding however. I know that there is not a lot that can be done on a state level in regards to the two-year waiting period for Medicare for those people who are on SSDI and not SSI, however the state does have the ability to decide if recipients of SSDI qualifies for Medicaid....they also control the amount of spend down, deductible, and accessibility someone with a chronic illness has to other possible health plans....seeing how an illness like MS pretty much limits your options once you are no longer working.

I will be taking along with me my camera in hopes of taking lots of pictures and I promise to take good notes as well. This way when I return I can fill you all in on what I have found out. I figure if we don't stand up to make a change then who will? This is our time to let the world know what our needs are....and this is just the first step!