Subject: URGENT: Action Needed on Medicaid - important to PWA / HIV
From: [email-masked]
Date: Wed, 18 Oct 1995 18:37:07 -0400

_________________________________________________________________
URGENT Action Alert from the
Human Rights Campaign

1101 14th Street NW
Washington, DC 20005
email:  [email-masked]
WWW:    http://www.hrcusa.org
_________________________________________________________________

                      URGENT MEDICAID ACTION ALERT!
                                    
            SENDING EMAIL MESSAGES TO CONGRESS IS FAST, EASY
               AND FREE THROUGH HRC'S ONLINE ACTION CENTER

                     http://www.hrcusa.org/actncntr/

The Senate and House will vote on the Budget Reconciliation bill
the week of October 23. This legislation will effectively
dismantle the Medicaid program and turn it over to the states
as a block grant with diminished federal resources and no federal
guidance.  Such an outcome will have devastating and life
threatening consequences for thousands of people living with
HIV/AIDS, other disable persons, poor women and children and low
income senior citizens.It is simply unacceptable for this
Congress to destroy the fundamental health safety net
provided by the Medicaid program.

             WHY DOES MEDICAID MATTER TO THE AIDS COMMUNITY?

Medicaid provides health coverage for 36 million poor Americans
who do not have private health insurance.  Medicaid covers a
range of health care services which vary by state, but
generally includes outpatient services, hospitalization and
nursing home, diagnostic and laboratory tests, prescription
drugs, and home health services.

Medicaid is important to you because it is the only safety net in
place around the country in case you or a loved one ever gets
sick with an illness like AIDS that can leave you unemployed, or
too sick to work.  Medicaid guarantees you medical care.

Medicaid pays nearly one-half (46 percent) of all AIDS-related
medical costs for all people with AIDS; and 90 percent of costs
for all children with AIDS.  Without adequate Medicaid coverage,
people with AIDS and their caregivers will be financially
devastated.

                     WHY SHOULD I BE CONCERNED NOW?

The current Congressional leadership made a promise to balance
the federal budget in seven years, while significantly increasing
military spending and offering large tax cuts for wealthy
Americans.

To balance the budget, the Republican leadership has decided to
cut basic health and social programs.  One of those programs up
for complete dismantling is Medicaid.  All these changes to
Medicaid are happening very fast without input from people or
medical providers who will be most affected by drastic changes in
the current program.

                          WHAT DO I NEED TO DO?

1.  Visit the Human Rights Campaign's Action Center online at 
*** http://www.hrcusa.org *** to send an instant e-mail to all of
your members of Congress urging them to vote NO on the medicaid
overhaul in the Budget Reconciliation Bill.

2.  Email President Clinton <[email-masked]> and  tell
him "if the Budget Reconciliation bill passes Congress, VETO the
bill."

3.  Share this information with everyone you know.  Have them
e-mail, call and write the President, their Senators and
Representatives.

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