Topic: Reminder NH Lyme Bill to the Senate on Monday
tdtid
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Member # 10276
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REMINDER: for New Hampshire residents!! WE DESPERATELY NEED YOU TO ATTEND THE HEARING ON MONDAY!! IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT THE SENATE HEARING HALL BE PACKED TO SHOW SUPPORT OF THIS BILL!!!!! PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE CONSIDER COMING TO CONCORD ON MONDAY.....
ACTION ALERT FOR NH HOUSE BILL 1326
PLEASE ATTEND THE Senate Executive Departments and Administration Committee hearing on House Bill 1326 This Monday, April 26th
YOUR PRESENCE IS CRITICAL TO THE PASSAGE OF HB1326
WHAT TIME: 1 p.m.
WHERE: Rooms 206 and 208 Legislative Office Building (located behind the State House).
WHY: Your very presence in the room on Monday will send a powerful message to the Senate that this is a statewide issue. We believe our stunning success (300-56) in the House was due, in large part, to the sheer number of residents who attended the hearing and called their representatives to alert them to one of the most serious public health threats in our state. We must build on that momentum at the Senate hearing. Please know, whether you speak or bear witness, your presence is critical at this hearing.
WHO CAN SPEAK: The Lyme Legislation Committee has arranged for key people to testify before the Senate committee to help the members understand the grave importance of this proposed legislation. We believe we have selected an excellent cross-section to represent the Lyme community.
We have also already submitted to the Executive Departments and Administration Committee more than 200 pages of written testimonies that the Lyme Community submitted in January to the House Health and Human Services committee. Please know, your stories will be read by the EDA committee.
Still, we want to invite members of the Lyme Community to tell their stories, as this is a unique opportunity for our legislators to hear from their constituents. Your story is very important. However, unlike the House hearing (which went on for more than five hours), most Senate committee hearings last only about 1-1.5 hours. So it is imperative our message remains clear, on point and tight.
If you would like to speak, please consider the following recommendations: * Limit your time to 1.5 to 2 minutes maximum. * Keep your message tight * Tell your personal story * Weave into your story the fact that doctors are not currently free to practice according to both guidelines. * This does not legislate care, but rather gives doctors the freedom to make treatment decisions based on individualized clinical evaluations rather than a set of guidelines. * If your doctor has ever stated s/he is afraid to treat with long-term antibiotics because of fear of repercussion, now is the time to state that without using the doctor's name. * Please write your speech before the hearing. * Practice It * Time It * Shorten it
In the interest of time, we ask that you be vigilant of the messages being shared by others before you speak. If your story is much like those that have already been told, you might want to consider simply standing and stating your name, hometown, and indicate your support House Bill 1326 in a statement such as:
"Hello. My name is Julie Hall. I live in Kensington, New Hampshire and four out of five of my family members have been diagnosed with Lyme. I am here today to strongly urge this committee to support House Bill 1326."
RSVP: If you plan to attend the hearing on Monday, April 26, please send an email to the committee member who sent you this Action Alert.
Call Your Senator Feel free to use the enclosed scripts to contact YOUR OWN Senator to request that they support HB1326. It is best to speak to your Senator by phone if possible, as they receive many emails each day. If you call them, BE SURE TO SAY THAT YOU ARE A CONSTITUENT (from their district), as they are more likely to respond to constituent calls.
You can call at home or office (see contact information below). Legislative aides will pass your message along to the senator. If you would like to follow up your phone call with an email, it is also imperative to note that you are from that senator's district. Please be respectful about the hour of day you call and the amount of time you take.
"Hello, may I please speak to ________ . I am calling to ask you to support New Hampshire House Bill 1326, which will give doctors the freedom to use all of their skills and training to assist Lyme patients without fear of retribution.
House Bill 1326 does NOT legislate medical care or carve out exemptions for doctors. It simply states that prescription of long-term antibiotics for Lyme patients, in and of itself, is insufficient grounds for a medical board investigation. House Bill 1326 is also a reaffirmation of the legislature's commitment to strong relationships between doctors and patients giving our physicians the freedom of choice to make Lyme-disease related treatment decisions on a case-by-case basis.
HB 1326 does NOT prohibit the board of medicine's ability to oversee physicians. Nothing in HB 1326 protects physicians who are negligent in treating patients. HB 1326 simply clarifies that the prescription of long-term antibiotics, in and of itself, is insufficient grounds for a medical board investigation. Removing this physician concern opens the door for patients to receive expanded treatment information and options, and honors patient choice.
I believe the New Hampshire House of Representatives did the right thing when they passed this bill 300-56 and trust the Senate will do the same. Please know that I am not asking you to do something that has not been done before. I AM asking you to address what has become one of our country's fastest-growing public health care threats. Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York and California have already enacted legislation to protect the rights of physicians to treat Lyme disease patients with long-term antibiotics based on their clinical evaluation. In fact, the Connecticut House and Senate passed very similar legislation UNANIMOUSLY. I am asking that you now do the same for New Hampshire residents like myself.
Thank you for your time."
YOU CAN FOLLOW YOUR PHONE CALL WITH AN EMAIL: SAMPLE LETTER: Copy and paste the letter below OR draft your own letter and use it.
Dear Senator ___________,
I am writing to ask you to support House Bill 1326. This bill will give New Hampshire doctors the freedom to use all of their skills and training to assist Lyme patients without fear of retribution.
We live in the state with the highest reported incidence of Lyme disease in the country. We must respond to this public health epidemic by allowing physicians in our state to provide treatment to their patients based on individualized clinical evaluation, without fear of retaliation from state medical boards. Connecticut, New York, Rhode Island and California have already passed similar legislation, and Virginia, Massachusetts and Minnesota are reviewing bills with the same purpose.
Although there are two standards of care, the New Hampshire Health and Human Services website still links to only one. Like patients who suffer from other diseases, it is important that physicians in New Hampshire tell patients about all available treatment options, as required by the American Medical Association.
Too many of your constituents are refused long-term treatment in New Hampshire and must cross state lines to find Lyme-literate doctors who will treat chronic Lyme disease based on a clinical evaluation. Many of these Granite State residents, once seriously disabled by Lyme or tick-borne diseases, have seen significant improvement with long-term antibiotic treatment. It is time we support New Hampshire physicians who seek to provide treatment for Lyme and other tick-borne diseases based on their own clinical training and research of medical-based evidence.
To do so opens the door for patients to receive expanded treatment options and information, an individualized approach to care, and honors patient choice. Patients who are diagnosed with cancer, back pain, etc. actually have more treatment options available to them than Lyme patients. I believe House Bill 1326 actually extends the medical board's mission of protection to Lyme patients and the physicians caring for them and, thus, serves the public good.
Thank you in advance for giving serious and thoughtful consideration to this bill. Please know I am available to speak with you about my own story at any time.
The Lyme Disease Network is a non-profit organization funded by individual donations. If you would like to support the Network and the LymeNet system of Web services, please send your donations to:
The
Lyme Disease Network of New Jersey 907 Pebble Creek Court,
Pennington,
NJ08534USA http://www.lymenet.org/
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