Ten Things You Can Do to Make a Difference

From Mark Johnson

1. Contact your Governor http://www.nga.org/governors/1,1169,C_GOV_ADDRESS,00.html, find out if he or she or staff are attending the National Governors Association (NGA) Annual Meeting, find out if disability issues are on the agenda, ask him or her to support ADAPT's resolution and attend Saturday's Rally, July 17th, http://evergreenadapt.org/events.

2. Contact the Bush, http://www.georgewbush.com/ and Kerry, http://www.johnkerry.com/index.html campaigns, find out what there plans are for NGA Annual Meeting.

3. Monitor the Action at NGA between July 16th-21st, http://www.freeourpeople.org/aar/nga04/ 

4. If you live in one of the eight states that NGA selected to participate in Rebalancing Long-Term Care Systems Toward Quality Community Living and Healthy Aging, http://www.nga.org/nga/newsRoom/1,1169,C_PRESS_RELEASE^D_7044,00.html, find out who the team members are and start the dialogue.

5. Share these reports and web sites, http://www.kff.org/medicaid/kcmu062104pkg.cfm and http://aspe.hhs.gov/daltcp/reports/arqual.htm.

6. Continue to support MiCASSA (http://www.adapt.org/casa/summary.htm), and Money Follows the Person (MFP), if it doesn't pass this year, it'll be introduced for the 5th time in 2005.

7. Use the 14th anniversary of ADA to elevate disability issues, distribute materials to candidates, contact you local media (share the results of the recent Harris Survey, http://www.nod.org/content.cfm?id=1537,  fill a complaint (involve your local P&A, http://www.ipna.org/NAPAS.htm), etc..

8. Contact the DNC, http://www.democrats.org/ and RNC, http://www.rnc.org or http://www.gop.com about there plans to elevate disability issues during there conventions.

9. Find out and plan a 6th anniversary of Olmstead and 15th anniversary of ADA event in 2005.

10. Forward this message.