I am faxing/emailing letters to my federal legislators today urging their support of HR2877 and similar legislation in the US Senate.

The insurance companies are backing 2526, does that tell you anything? HR2526 pays lip service to the Lyme cause.

Do you want our LLMDs protected? Do you want your health insurance to pay for Lyme treatment? Act today to support HR2877.

HR 2526 is a great bill that would help patients.

We will have one chance of getting a bill that will help us, so we must support the best bill.

HR2877 will do much more for finding treatments for chronic Lyme disease, which I think is of major importance to us all.

There is a great deal of overlap in these two bills, but I don't see that the Kelly bill contains anything important that is not in HR2877, the Smith bill.

It would be a benefit to us all if you could explain - like Ellen has - what makes your favored bill the better of the two bills.

Geez, I guess you're right. When I think about these two bills and try to decide which one's best, the clear choice would be the one that does NOT include research for chronic Lyme. (I mean hey, that's pretty "rare" anyway-why would we need to research it? DUH!). It would be the bill that makes sure to NOT include LLMD's on the advisory board ('cause you know how long some of them want to go on treating and treating people for???! Sheesh!) It would be the bill that does NOT actual include Lyme patients on the advisory Board, 'cause half of them are paranoid anyway and if you got 'em on a Board you'd never hear the end of THAT!

Yep, I got to thinking about all the reasons to support 2526.

Can you see where we're coming from here, LHalins???

:-)

Michelle M

And there are all kinds of political reasons we can't even imagine - such as which Representative owes which Representative for what, the timing of all the steps up to a vote, what amendments get leeched onto the bill, etc - that will be factored into the Representative's choice.

So support which ever you think is best, or support both, but make your voices heard so that attention is paid.

I posted the names of the Representatives that have already signed on as co-sponsors of each bill. I will try to update that as more sign on as co-sponsors.

If your Representative is already there, see if you can get something from them to support patient care, or public education, or medical community education etc. etc. in your own state.

Those Representatives are already paying attention. You can make an appointment with their local office and present your ideas about what needs to be done locally.
Get the local press involved. Spin it for all it is worth!

in comparing the text of both bills, 2877 has distinct advangtages by focusing more in the direction of chronic Lyme and treatments.

That is why ILADS is supporting that one (2877), not both.

I think it will syphen energy away from getting the best legislation we can at this time.

I think Lyme patients should read and learn about both bills and choose the one that is better for the future of LD research.

I agree we should 'spin' the existance of the legislation for all ir's worth, and be as active as we can in this, just not to support both bills. They have some overlapping content, but there is a core difference as well.

In Lyme, we have to be careful to get protective legislation, because of all the misinformation and ill motivations that exost.

Mo