IF THE OPMC REFORM BILL, S4148, IS NOT PASSED BY TUESDAY, IT WILL HAVE TO BE RESUBMITTED IN JANUARY AND WE WILL HAVE TO START FROM SCRATCH.

Between now and January, though, we could lose a few of our docs. So this is a true emergency for us.

There are many, many bills in the Senate waiting to come up for a vote, and not nearly enough time for them all to do so.

So, if we want to get the bill that will protect our medcal care, we gotta make more noise than we have ever made in our lives!!

ACTION REQUESTED IMMEDIATELY, THROUGH TUESDAY.

A) FOR ALL LYME PATIENTS IN ALL STATES:
Please call and email Governor George Pataki right away. Telephone messages can be left on his answering machine.

Both telephone and email messages
can be as short as "Please pass S4148 to reform the OPMC". Leave your name and address on the phone messages..

Telephone:
518-474-8390

To Email The Governor:
Click on http://161.11.3.75/
Scroll down on the page this brings you to, and there is a form on which to submit your email.

B) FOR NEW YORKERS ONLY:
1) HANNON: Email Senator Kemp Hannon and call and leave a message on his answering machine.

Messages should thank him for sponsoring S4148, the OPMC Reform bill, AND urge him to have the bill brought up for a vote before the end of session. GIve name and address.

Email:
[email protected]

Phone:
518-455-2200

2) BRUNO: Call (answering machine) and email Senator Joseph Bruno. Urge him to bring S4148 , the OPMC Reform bill , to the floor for a vote. Leave name and address.

Telephone:
518-455-3191

Email:
Go to www.senatorbruno.com/send_email.asp There is a form on which to send an email.

3) PATAKI: Please call and email Governor Pataki.

Telephone:
518-474-8390

To Email The Governor:
Click on http://161.11.3.75/
Scroll down on the page and there is a form on which to submit your email.
___________________

A lot of very sick people have worked very,very hard to save medical care for all Lyme patients. We now need everyone to work hard for the next few days and generate as many emails and calls as possible.
Ellen
Voices Of Lyme

Let's do it!!!!!!!!!!!! Smother the Senators and Governor with calls and e-mails.

MO

Hi folks,
In addition to writng letters and emails to Pataki, please call and ask
every New Yorker you know to call the Govenror;s office at 518-474-8390

This should take just a minute of everyone's time. Tell the person
answering the phone that you are calling to ask the governor to support
S5221 and S3000.. You will be asked what the blls are about and you
can say OPMC Reform or reforming the OPMC or givng due process to
doctors ..

When I called, the only other info they asked me for was my zip code.

Please have each person in a household make a separate call to reflect
the true number of people supporting these bills. Please send an email
to any New York friend who might be willing to make a phone call to help
you.

THIS IS NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR WRITING LETTTERS OR EMAILS TO THE GOVERNOR.
Sorry. But we do need to really show great strength in the next week.

Lyme patients from all over the country are also writing to Pataki about
these bills. Since New Yorkers will have extra clout with the
Governor,it's important that we add the phone calls from New Yorkers to
our campaign.

Thanks so much for all you are doing.
Ellen

**A sample e-mail to friends and family re: phone calls in NY:

To my friends and family in NYS,

PLEASE make one SIMPLE phone call to the Governor's office (518-474-8390). Just tell them you would like him to support OPMC reform bills S5221 and S3000. All they are doing is taking a tally. The only thing they asked me for was this morning was my zip code.

We need to flood his office with calls. Ask all of your friends and relatives in NYS to call (a call from each member of a houshold is counted)..

Believe me this is VERY important. One word from him will push this over the line. Time is crutial as session in Albany ends June 22!

Medical access for critically ill patients (esp Lyme disease) depends upon passage of S5221, in my opinion.. I don't want to think about what will happen if we aren't successful!

This alert IS FOR EVEYONE-not just New Yorkers.

Let's make sure they don't go after Dr. B. again, and the countless others who are in the line of fire.

Let's send them a message-a crystal clear message -by passing this bill...

The message?

We're done with this crap, and whether you know it or not, you are through acting like big brother...

This isn't Saudi Arabia or Yemen; this is the United States of America; and our relatives, friends and loved ones have offered their lives to protect the freedom that this country was founded on.

You don't get to decide that a horrendous illness doesn't exist just because HMO's have you in their pocket.

You don't get treat us like the outcast of society by ignoring this illness, lying to the world, and taking away good doctors, who are willing to put their license on the line and treat those who are truly ill.

Please join all lyme patients and help pass the 2 OPMC reform bills in New York State.

New York catapulted this witch hunt; let's take the breath out of the sails of totalitarianism.

Please see above for how to write and call.

Please see the new thread also for the rally tomorrow. The title is There may just be a miracle going on..

Thank you to EVERYONE at the battle-line...we owe you all so much!

Wins the Day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Honorable Gov. George Pataki,
Please pass bill s4148.
Our daughter has recieved three years of treatment for late stage lyme disease. She is getting well. I have to travel from Oregon to the east coast for her medical care because the standard of care in Oregon would have rendered her dead.
This standard of care will not allow more than three weeks of medication. We have found this to be "incorrect" in our case.

Doctors are afraid to treat outside the standard of care for lyme disease because doctors all over are being persecuted by boards (at the direction of insurance companies who do not want to pay for care). Your state can help change this practice.

Please consider the thousands of patients who are relying on this decision by NY to be able to obtain health care in their own communities by doctors who are watching your decision on allowing longer term treatment without persecution for Lyme Disease.

Our daughter's prognosis, after she did not respond to three weeks of treatment, was a year or less to live. Three years later with aggressive long term treatment, my daughter is competitive rock climbing and showing her horse. I guess our state standard of care was not accurate and the east coast doctor who said "long term treatment was required" was right. If this bill is not passed, patients like my daughter will die, because doctors are afraid to treat.

Thank you for your time and consideration in passing s4148 allowing doctors to feel free to treat lyme disease as the critical illness it is, in a way that will be effective for the long term viability of patients.

Please make these 3 phone calls and emails tonight, ASAP.

Please pick up that phone; call anyone you know; each legislators call lasts no longer than 3 minutes.

Thanks for your effort, time, and persistence.