An international instrument demonstrating the rights and dignity of persons living with disabilities, the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities celebrates its fifth anniversary on December 3rd. As part of a worldwide campaign, the National MS Society is joining other international MS organizations in an online petition asking employers and decision makers to remove the barriers that prevent people with MS from finding and staying in work. Click here to sign this collaborative petition today.
Work is a fundamental aspect of our lives. It provides not only a salary, but a sense of self-worth, an opportunity to lead an independent life and to be a fully integrated member of society. People living with multiple sclerosis (MS) and other chronic, fluctuating diseases are often marginalized by society and their rights to access work are at times not recognized by employers or safeguarded by law in their country. Some barriers to work can be easily removed through small changes to the workplace. Flexible hours, seated rather than standing work and a place to rest during the day could be the differences that enable some people with MS to stay in work for longer.
To play a significant role in the worldwide MS movement, click here to take a few minutes today and sign this online petition. The petition--which urges positive changes that will enable people with MS to work--will be delivered to the High Commissioner for Human Rights Navanethem Pillay. The High Commissioner's office leads the global effort in identifying, highlighting and developing responses to today's human rights challenges. It is a simple but important step
Monday, November 28, 2011
Sunday, November 6, 2011
ASK THE EMPLOYMENT SPECIALIST: TELEPHONE Q&A SESSIONS
Do you have an employment question you would like answered?
Are you curious about workplace disclosure, social security benefits, need a reasonable accommodation or are you thinking about returning to work?
On November 16 and December 14, employment specialist Barbara McKeon, CRC, LMHC, Director of Employment for the NYC - Southern NY Chapter of the National MS Society, will be available to address your questions regarding employment concerns for people living with MS.
Participants may register for any one session of their choice:
November 16 6 p.m. – 7 p.m.
December 14 12 p.m. – 1 p.m.
Dial-in information will be provided with registration confirmation. Participants will be asked to present their question in advance during registration.
Register online or for more information, call 1-800-344-4867 and have your question ready!
National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Greater New England Chapter
101A First Avenue, Suite 6 | Waltham, Mass. 02451-1115
tel: 1 800-344-4867 | fax: 1 781-890-2089 | MSnewengland.org
Are you curious about workplace disclosure, social security benefits, need a reasonable accommodation or are you thinking about returning to work?
On November 16 and December 14, employment specialist Barbara McKeon, CRC, LMHC, Director of Employment for the NYC - Southern NY Chapter of the National MS Society, will be available to address your questions regarding employment concerns for people living with MS.
Participants may register for any one session of their choice:
November 16 6 p.m. – 7 p.m.
December 14 12 p.m. – 1 p.m.
Dial-in information will be provided with registration confirmation. Participants will be asked to present their question in advance during registration.
Register online or for more information, call 1-800-344-4867 and have your question ready!
National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Greater New England Chapter
101A First Avenue, Suite 6 | Waltham, Mass. 02451-1115
tel: 1 800-344-4867 | fax: 1 781-890-2089 | MSnewengland.org
Lifespan Respite Reauthorization Introduced to Support Family Caregivers
Last week, Representatives Jim Langevin (RI-2) and Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-5) introduced legislation to reauthorize the Lifespan Respite Care Program--a program enacted in 2006 to help support our nation’s 65 million family caregivers.
Up to one quarter of individuals living with MS will require long-term care services at some point during the course of the disease. Often, a family member steps into the role of primary caregiver, becoming part of the invaluable network of family caregivers that provide approximately 80% of this nation’s long-term care. Family caregivers allow people with MS or those living with other chronic conditions to remain in the home. Caregiving can be challenging however, and respite—or temporary relief from the daily routine and stress of providing care—is necessary to keep the caregiver and the family healthy.
The Lifespan Respite Care Program provides states with funding to establish or enhance statewide respite systems that improve access to quality respite care. The bipartisan legislation being championed by Representatives Langevin and McMorris Rodgers continues the program and its funding. November is National Family Caregiver Month, so whether you are a caregiver yourself or a member of the MS community, celebrate and support family caregivers by clicking here to email your U.S. Representative and urge him/her to cosponsor the Lifespan Respite Care Reauthorization Act, H.R. 3266.
Implementation of CLASS Program Suspended
The Obama Administration recently released a statement announcing that it does “not see a viable path forward” for the Community Assistance Living Services and Supports (CLASS) program, a provision of the Affordable Care Act. The intention of CLASS was to provide people with long-term care options, as well as to help relieve some of the significant burden currently on the Medicaid program, which has become the primary public source of funding for health and long-term services and supports for people with disabilities of all ages.
CLASS was intended to be a voluntary insurance program into which working adults could choose to make premium contributions through their employer or directly. If an individual were to develop functional limitations or cognitive impairments and had paid premiums for at least five years, s/he would receive a daily cash benefit to help purchase non-medical services and supports necessary to maintain community residence such as home health care, adult day care, assistive technology, and accessible transportation.
The law requires the program to be solvent for 75 years and particularly given the continued difficult fiscal climate that our country faces, the Administration has stated for months that it will not implement the program until it could be definitively classified as self-sustaining. After months of considering structural changes and actuaries crunching numbers to make the program self-sustaining, the Administration concluded it is not possible to achieve that goal at this time and therefore stopped efforts to implement the CLASS program. Earlier this week, Senator John Thune (SD) made a move to formally repeal the CLASS program, but the effort was blocked by Senator Jay Rockefeller (WV).
The National MS Society's health care reform principles called for access to high-quality long-term supports and services and as CLASS would help fulfill that goal, is a program that the Society and many other disability organizations advocated for as part of the Affordable Care Act. Though it has been determined that the CLASS program cannot be pursued at this time, with an expected surge in the aging and disabled population and a corresponding increased need for long-term care in our nation's future, it is critical to remain focused on developing fiscally sound, workable solutions to the United States' long-term care dilemma. The Society remains committed to collaborating with our partners in the disability community and key decision makers to ensure that people with disabilities and all individuals needing them have meaningful access to appropriate and affordable long-term services and supports.
Medicare Prescription Drug Open Enrollment – Act by December 7
If you receive prescription drug coverage through Medicare Part D, now is the time to review your coverage choices and change to another plan, if you desire. Medicare Part D’s Open Enrollment period moved up this year and began on October 15th and ends on December 7th. This is the only time you can switch Medicare prescription drug plans during the calendar year unless you manage to qualify for a special enrollment opportunity. Current enrollees facing any changes should have received an Annual Notice of Change from their plan highlighting any modifications to their premiums or out-of-pocket expenses, as well as updates to the formulary. If you did not receive such a notice, you have the right to request it from your plan. For more information about Open Enrollment, click here.
Follow Us on Twitter
The National MS Society Public Policy Office recently created its own Twitter account as another means by which to engage and inform the public. Please follow @MSActivist and help us spread the word!
Up to one quarter of individuals living with MS will require long-term care services at some point during the course of the disease. Often, a family member steps into the role of primary caregiver, becoming part of the invaluable network of family caregivers that provide approximately 80% of this nation’s long-term care. Family caregivers allow people with MS or those living with other chronic conditions to remain in the home. Caregiving can be challenging however, and respite—or temporary relief from the daily routine and stress of providing care—is necessary to keep the caregiver and the family healthy.
The Lifespan Respite Care Program provides states with funding to establish or enhance statewide respite systems that improve access to quality respite care. The bipartisan legislation being championed by Representatives Langevin and McMorris Rodgers continues the program and its funding. November is National Family Caregiver Month, so whether you are a caregiver yourself or a member of the MS community, celebrate and support family caregivers by clicking here to email your U.S. Representative and urge him/her to cosponsor the Lifespan Respite Care Reauthorization Act, H.R. 3266.
Implementation of CLASS Program Suspended
The Obama Administration recently released a statement announcing that it does “not see a viable path forward” for the Community Assistance Living Services and Supports (CLASS) program, a provision of the Affordable Care Act. The intention of CLASS was to provide people with long-term care options, as well as to help relieve some of the significant burden currently on the Medicaid program, which has become the primary public source of funding for health and long-term services and supports for people with disabilities of all ages.
CLASS was intended to be a voluntary insurance program into which working adults could choose to make premium contributions through their employer or directly. If an individual were to develop functional limitations or cognitive impairments and had paid premiums for at least five years, s/he would receive a daily cash benefit to help purchase non-medical services and supports necessary to maintain community residence such as home health care, adult day care, assistive technology, and accessible transportation.
The law requires the program to be solvent for 75 years and particularly given the continued difficult fiscal climate that our country faces, the Administration has stated for months that it will not implement the program until it could be definitively classified as self-sustaining. After months of considering structural changes and actuaries crunching numbers to make the program self-sustaining, the Administration concluded it is not possible to achieve that goal at this time and therefore stopped efforts to implement the CLASS program. Earlier this week, Senator John Thune (SD) made a move to formally repeal the CLASS program, but the effort was blocked by Senator Jay Rockefeller (WV).
The National MS Society's health care reform principles called for access to high-quality long-term supports and services and as CLASS would help fulfill that goal, is a program that the Society and many other disability organizations advocated for as part of the Affordable Care Act. Though it has been determined that the CLASS program cannot be pursued at this time, with an expected surge in the aging and disabled population and a corresponding increased need for long-term care in our nation's future, it is critical to remain focused on developing fiscally sound, workable solutions to the United States' long-term care dilemma. The Society remains committed to collaborating with our partners in the disability community and key decision makers to ensure that people with disabilities and all individuals needing them have meaningful access to appropriate and affordable long-term services and supports.
Medicare Prescription Drug Open Enrollment – Act by December 7
If you receive prescription drug coverage through Medicare Part D, now is the time to review your coverage choices and change to another plan, if you desire. Medicare Part D’s Open Enrollment period moved up this year and began on October 15th and ends on December 7th. This is the only time you can switch Medicare prescription drug plans during the calendar year unless you manage to qualify for a special enrollment opportunity. Current enrollees facing any changes should have received an Annual Notice of Change from their plan highlighting any modifications to their premiums or out-of-pocket expenses, as well as updates to the formulary. If you did not receive such a notice, you have the right to request it from your plan. For more information about Open Enrollment, click here.
Follow Us on Twitter
The National MS Society Public Policy Office recently created its own Twitter account as another means by which to engage and inform the public. Please follow @MSActivist and help us spread the word!
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About Me
- Steve
- North Grafton, Massachusetts, United States
- Well-educated, disabled at this point with Multiple Sclerosis. I am very glad that I was able to do the things that I have been able to do over the years. had to change the picture, this one's more realistic.