IlliNOISY Advocates Raise Money, Too!
Mary Klimczak, member of the IlliNOISY Advocacy Committee, and her co-worker
Paula Clayton recently held a "Think Pink" fundraiser at their workplace to raise money
for the IlliNOISY Advocacy Network.
Don't Miss the First Health Care Justice Act Hearing!
Wednesday,October 5th, 2005
4 - 7 p.m.
Trinity United Church of Christ, 400 W. 95th St., Chicago
Come to the hearing - this is YOUR chance to be part of the health care solution
in Illinois!
Going to be in Washington, DC? Have coffee with your U.S. Senators!
TAKE ACTION TODAY!
2. Attend the Heath Committee Vote - Wed., Oct. 5th
8:30 a.m. - City Hall, 121 N. LaSalle, 2nd Floor
3.) Attend City Council Vote - Thurs., Oct. 6th
7:30 a.m. - City Hall, 121 N. LaSalle, 2nd Floor
Project LEAD® is a science training course developed by the National Breast Cancer Coalition
designed to help breast cancer activists influence research and public policy
processes.
Upcoming Project LEAD Dates and locations:
Washington, DC (Basic Project LEAD), November 2-6, 2005 - Application deadline
passed
Washington, DC (Clinical Trials LEAD), January19-22, 2006 - Application deadline
November 19, 2005
Houston, TX (Basic Project LEAD), March 22-26, 2006 - Application deadline January
22, 2006
San Jose, CA (Quality Care LEAD), August 2-6, 2006 - Application deadline June
2, 2006
United Airlines helped ten IlliNOISY Advocates to attend the 2005 NBCC Advocacy
Conference in Washington, DC.
Thank you United Airlines!
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October 2005 IlliNOISY News
The latest news from the Y-ME IlliNOISY Advocacy Network! Watch for the most
recent edition in your inbox the first Tuesday of each month.
IN THIS ISSUE:
Advocacy in Action: Raising Money to Advocate for Breast Cancer
On September 27th, Mary Klimczak, a member of the Y-ME IlliNOISY Advocacy Committee,
and her co-worker Paula Clayton held a "Think Pink" fundraiser at their workplace
to raise money for the IlliNOISY Advocacy Network. The funds raised will help
many IlliNOISY advocates take the fight against breast cancer to Washington, DC
as they lobby their Members of Congress to support breast cancer research and
other important policies that impact those facing breast cancer.
Members of the IlliNOISY Advocacy Committee work on everything from fundraising
to building our network - if you are interested in joining the Y-ME IlliNOISY
Advocacy Committee contact Alicia at ahuguelet@y-me.org or (312) 364-9071.
Let's Make October the Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Act Month!
October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and we must let our Members
of Congress know that during this month we need to do more than be aware - we must take action! And the action we want them to take is to sign on as a co-sponsor of the Breast
Cancer and Environmental Research Act. Please take a moment to contact your Senators
and/or Representatives listed below who are NOT yet co-sponsors of this important
piece of legislation.
Priority #3: Enactment of the Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Act (H.R.
2231 / S. 757)
It is generally believed that the environment plays a role in the development
of breast cancer, but the extent of that role is not understood. This critical
issue must be approached thoughtfully and methodically and a national strategy
for increasing knowledge in this area must be developed. The Breast Cancer and
Environmental Research Act would create grants for the establishment of multi-institutional,
multi-disciplinary research centers to study the potential link between the environment
and breast cancer.
There are still many Members of Congress who have NOT signed on to H.R. 2231
/ S. 757 - please take action in October by contacting them!
Illinois Members of Congress Who Have NOT Co-Sponsored H.R. 2231 / S. 757
~ Sen. Dick Durbin (D)
~ Sen. Barack Obama (D)
~ Rep. Bobby Rush (D-01)
~ Rep. Henry Hyde (R-06)
~ Rep. Danny Davis (D-07)
~ Rep. Dennis Hastert (R-14)
~ Rep. Timothy Johnson (R-15)
~ Rep. Lane Evans (D-17)
~ Rep. John Shimkus (R-19)
Please visit the IlliNOISY Action Alert page to take action by thanking those who have co-sponsored and urging those who
have not, to do so!
DOD Breast Cancer Research Program Funded at $150 Million in the Senate
Update on Priority #2: $150 million dollar appropriation for the Department of Defense (DoD) peer-reviewed
Breast Cancer Research Program (BCRP) for fiscal year (FY) 2006
The full Senate Appropriations Committee passed the Defense Appropriations bill
with $150 million for the DOD Breast Cancer Research Program (BCRP)!!! The Defense
Appropriations bill has moved to the Senate floor and currently the full Senate
is debating various amendments to the bill (unrelated to the DOD BCRP). Once the
bill passes the Senate, of course there will be a need for additional advocacy
as it moves to conference committee with the House bill as the House only approved
$115 million for the DOD BCRP.
Keep an eye out for future alerts on this priority!
Patients With Private Insurance More Likely Than Those With Medicaid, No Insurance
To Receive Follow-Up Care
Patients who have private health insurance are more likely to receive follow-up
care within one week of emergency department treatment than those who are enrolled
in Medicaid or lack health coverage, according to a study published on Wednesday
in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Read more.
NCI Director Assuming Role as Acting FDA Commissioner
National Cancer Institute (NCI) Director Dr. Andrew C. von Eschenbach was named
by President George W. Bush last Friday to assume the role of acting commissioner
of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Dr. von Eschenbach also will continue
in his role as NCI director. The appointment of Dr. von Eschenbach to acting FDA
commissioner followed the resignation from that position by Dr. Lester Crawford.
In addition to his time as the FDA commissioner, Dr. Crawford also served as deputy
commissioner and acting commissioner at the agency. Read more.
Acting FDA Commissioner Von Eschenbach Decides To Temporarily End Day-To-Day
Duties as Head of NCI After Concerns About Potential Conflicts of Interest
Acting FDA Commissioner Andrew von Eschenbach on Friday said that he will take
a temporary leave of absence as director of the National Cancer Institute to address
conflict-of-interest concerns. In recent weeks, some health care experts and
lawmakers have raised concerns because, as acting FDA commissioner, von Eschenbach
could have the ability to approve medications that he helped develop at NCI.
Read more.
Senate Reauthorizes Breast Cancer Stamp
On September 28, the Senate approved, by unanimous consent, a bill (S. 37) to
reauthorize the breast cancer research stamp for two years through December 31,
2007. Funding for the stamp is set to expire at the end of this year. The Senate
Governmental Affairs and Homeland Security Committee approved the measure on June
22.
Legislation Recently Introduced:
H. Res. 444 - Rep. Ralph M. Hall (D-TX) / Energy and Commerce (09/15/05) - A
resolution supporting the goals and ideals of National Ovarian Cancer Awareness
Month.
~ The nation's employers on average anticipate an increase of about 10% in health
care costs next year if they do not change benefits packages and two-thirds of
companies surveyed said they will shift these costs on to employees.
~ A recent survey found that three in five firms (60%) offered coverage to workers
in 2005, down significantly from 69% in 2000 and 66% in 2003. The drop stems almost
entirely from fewer small businesses offering health benefits, as nearly all businesses
(98%) with 200 or more workers offer such benefits.
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