President pushes Health Care Reform in NC

On Wednesday, July 29th, Barack Obama made his way to Raleigh, explaining his plan for health care reform and drawing in an eager crowd. Whether or not you attended the forum, please share your thoughts on Obama’s visit and his proposed ideas for health care.

Obama Signs the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

Last Friday, the President lived up to one part of his campaign when he signed a human rights treaty that addresses persons with disabilities. “’This treaty is good for America, good for people with disabilities, and good for the world," says Marca Bristo, President of United States International Council on Disabilities (USICD). "By signing this treaty the US is reaffirming its commitment to basic human rights of all people with disabilities and positioning us to better contribute our expertise on the global level.’"

He picked a significant time to sign it too, as it was the 19th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. When reflecting on the effects of the ADA and of hardships experienced by those living with disabilities, Obama thought of his father-in-law, a man who lived with multiple sclerosis. Frasier Robinson strove to work past this debilitating disease and “just wanted to be given the opportunity to do right by his family,” Obama said.

Obama’s commitment to sign this treaty serves as a good sign for future progress in the disability community. To read more about the UN convention, click here.

State Budget Almost Final

Legislative leaders have reached an agreement to raise taxes by $982 million, a deal which could clear the way for approval of a $19 billion budget as early as next week. Some of the finer details of the compromise with regard to spending have yet to be ironed out but will be taken care of promptly, probably within the next day or so. This latest proposal fully favors neither the House nor the Senate plan but instead takes parts from both.

News outlets have reported the plan raises sin taxes and sales taxes, with the latter by three-fourths of a cent or one cent depending on how negotiations proceed. The second key piece of the compromise bill is an income tax proposal, where all taxpayers pay an extra two percent charge on their income tax liability.

Throughout the budget negotiations, the National MS Society, NC Chapters have partnered with TogetherNC, a collection of non-profit organizations, service providers, and professional associations who have come together to promote wise choices for shared prosperity for all North Carolinians.

Francis Collins is Obama’s Pick for Heading the NIH

Prior to election results, Francis Collins, M.D., Ph.D., endorsed the soon-to-be President’s take on science and technology in a dignified manner, and now Obama has nominated Collins to direct the National Institutes of Health. This is not to say that the decision, however, is due to support and without merit.

Former head of the Human Genome Project and a significant contributor to the understanding of human health and disease, Collins’ nomination has been well received, particularly by his peers and UNC-Chapel Hill's Medical School where he began his medical career.

When announcing the nomination, Obama displayed his reverence for Collins by stating that his “administration is committed to promoting scientific integrity and pioneering scientific research and [he is] confident that Dr. Francis Collins will lead the NIH to achieve these goals.”

His promising background will probably lead Collins to an even more promising future for the NIH. I mean Collins has only been a leader in sequencing human DNA and only wrote an enticing novel on the “wonderful harmony in the complementary truths of science and faith” and only “led work that identified genes associated with type 2 diabetes and the genes responsible for cystic fibrosis, neurofibromatosis, Huntington's disease and Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome.” Only.

Stem Cell Research Resumed

On March 9, 2009, President Barack H. Obama issued Executive Order 13505: Removing Barriers to Responsible Scientific Research Involving Human Stem Cells. The order essentially allows federal funds to be used for stem cell research, an area of study that was previously financed solely by private funding. According to the legislation, “the Secretary of Health and Human Services, through the Director of NIH, may support and conduct responsible, scientifically worthy human stem cell research, including human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research, to the extent permitted by law.”



The National Institutes of Health (NIH) created a set of guidelines for the upcoming human stem cell research. Already in effect, these standards should serve to advance the field of biomedical research and provide a reason for federal funding of stem cell research to continue indefinitely.

The National MS Society is looking forward to the potential positive outcomes of this research and will continue to keep you updated on its progress.

Future Taxes on Health Benefits?

Per an announcement by Vice President Joe Biden, it has recently come to attention that the nation’s hospitals have decided to give up $155 billion in future Medicare and Medicaid payments in order to facilitate Obama’s desired cost of legislation.

Aside from hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, the American Medical Association, and other groups representing physicians are potential concession makers that could serve as a great push for health care reform.

This new information troubled Senate Democratic leaders who rebelled yesterday against a proposed tax on health care benefits. Many of them are opposed to this type of legislation, fearing that votes could be lost and the public made unhappy. Public polls reveal that around 60 or 70 percent thought negatively of taxing health care benefits to “pay for reform.”

Senator Max Baucus, Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, has been working with a small group of Republicans to devise a plan that the public would find more applicable and worthy of support. A tenet of the plan includes taxing higher-cost health benefits that workers receive on the job. Despite uncertainties about the details, Baucus remains headstrong in his belief that a tax on health benefits is the most effective way to both pay for health care and also prevent the growth of coverage costs in the future.

Stay tuned for more information on health care reform, as the House and Senate strive to come to terms about legislation before the August recess.

Help America Vote Act Increases Voting Numbers in the Disability Community

American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) has announced that the voter turnout of Americans with disabilities was only 7 percentage points lower than that of people without disabilities in the November 2008 election.

Researchers conducting the study, Lisa Schur and Douglas Kruse, professors at the School of Management and Labor Relations from Rutgers University who have extensively studied the disability community, also found that 3.8 million more people with disabilities voted in the 2008 presidential election than the 2000 presidential election. They found that the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) of 2002 was one of the leading factors in causing this change.

HAVA established a program to provide funds to States to replace punch card voting systems, formed an Election Assistance Commission to assist in the administration of Federal elections and to otherwise provide assistance with the administration of certain Federal election laws and programs, and established minimum election administration standards for States and units of local government. Most importantly, the act, one that the National MS Society strongly supported at the time, mandated that voting be accessible.

Thanks to HAVA, those of the disability community are now more strongly inclined to play an active role in the government.