Als Advocacy Request

[ZenArcher]

With just a few weeks remaining before Congress adjourns for the fall elections, the time has come for the Senate to vote on S. 3297 and pass the ALS Registry Act. We anticipate that the Senate may hold a series of votes on S. 3297 at any time from now until the end of the month so it is absolutely critical that you reach out to your Senators TODAY. This may be our last chance to pass the ALS Registry Act this year and take the next steps in creating a national ALS patient registry.

Thanks to your continued outreach, we are now just five votes short of the 60 we need to pass S. 3297! So please go to the Advocacy Action Center of our website and tell your Senators not to leave town until they pass this critical legislation. Let them know that people with ALS cannot afford to wait until next year. Let them know that politics should not come before patients' lives and that arguments that it costs too much are just excuses (the bill is an authorization and does not appropriate a single dollar!). And let them know you will be watching how they vote. Let's finish the job and enact the ALS Registry Act this year!

In addition to grassroots efforts, The ALS Association also has engaged in other advocacy efforts here in Washington. We helped to organize a coalition of more than 140 different organizations who recently sent a letter to the Senate in support of S. 3297. Moreover, Oprah Winfrey has helped generate support for S. 3297 during her daytime talk show by requesting viewers urge Congress to support one of the bills included in S. 3297. These combined efforts, along with your grassroots outreach, are sending a loud and clear message that hundreds of organizations representing millions of Americans are in this fight together. We want the Senate to pass S. 3297 this year. So again, please contact the Senate today!

Finally, as you reach out to the Senate, we also want to emphasize how important it is for you to support S. 3297 and not advocate for the ALS Registry Act to be considered as a separate piece of legislation. Our supporters in the Senate have included the ALS Registry Act as part of S. 3297 in order to pass the bill this year. And it likely is the only way this can be accomplished, for there simply is not enough time remaining in this year's session to pass the ALS Registry Act as a stand-alone bill. In fact, if we do not unite behind S. 3297, Senator Tom Coburn will succeed in his more than two year quest to kill the ALS Registry Act. We can't let that happen. People with ALS can't afford to wait any longer.

Contact your Senators TODAY!

If you have any questions or would like assistance reaching out to your Senators, please contact the Advocacy Department at advocacy@alsa-national.org.

[Berta]

Great post to get attention to this matter- my Senators and my Congressman are all on board for every bill re vets-that I can think of-but they have to hear from us-

Please ask your congressional reps to support S 3297 and HR 6562 as well and the many many pending bills that can alter the lives of veterans and their families.

You can call them and email but follow it up with a letter.My Congressman -Randy Kuhl NY just replied to me that he co sponsored HR 6798,6562 and HR 5954.

We are their voice.

They have to know how we feel.

Edited September 18, 2008 by Berta

[ZenArcher]

Last Chance

There may be a vote as early as today. If not passed on this vote the ALS community will be forced to start again next year. With an average lifespan of 18 months - 5 years that is time we can't afford. Vets are more than twice as likely to develop ALS. Please help us get the registry passed. The letters are prewritten and automatically addressed to your senators based on zip code. All it requires from you is to input some personal information and click Send.

A minute of you time today could help not only veterans but some 40,000 people with ALS in the US alone have a little hope. Thank you to all who have helped thus far.