On February 14-16, Jackie Mallow and I traveled to Washington DC to attend the 2011 Disability Policy Seminar; "Cultivating New Champions on Capitol Hill." The Seminar involved two days learning about the most crucial and key political issues regarding current disability policies. We were privileged to meet with Evan Farrar, Executive Director for PWSA-USA who also attended the conference. Together we were able to discuss how these policies affect the lives of individuals diagnosed with PWS, their families and providers. National experts presented on Bills currently within congress that have a significant impact for individuals with disabilities both negatively and positively. While the information presented was often referred to as the “doom and gloom,” great effort and attention was placed on the positive impact we can make by taking action to protect disability rights. Some of the topics presented at the seminar included: • Developmental Disabilities Assistance & Bill of Rights Act • Federal Budget and Appropriations • Employment • Medicaid and Medicare • Social Security • Housing • Education • Affordable Care Act With over 100 new members in Congress, the time to educate our legislators and actively advocate is upon us. On the third day of our trip, Jackie and I had the opportunity to visit both the Senate Office and the House Office and meet with our Wisconsin legislators. We were armed with talking points related to our concerns on both a national and state level. We were encouraged by the personal attention and time we were given by each office and the concern that our Congressman’s office staff expressed to us regarding the issues that we presented. We were pleased to have the opportunity to meet with Senator Herb Kohl as well as two of his Legislative Assistants, Jessah Foulk and Kristin Kreple. We also met with Legislative Assistant Alan Elias from Senator Ron Johnson’s office, Senior Legislative Assistant Amy Bos from Representative Jim Sensenbrenner’s office and Kevin James, Legislative Assistant for Representative Thomas Petri. We would personally like to thank each of them for their time and support and look forward to working with them as we continue to move forward together. We encourage everyone to reach out to their legislators whether in person, through letters and emails, or by phone and let them know that any cuts to services for individuals with disabilities will harm them and their families and this is unacceptable. To be able to be in Washington DC when President Obama proposed his new budget, with the national deficit greater than ever before and the House shift highly partisan, was an intense experience to say the least. However, it was an honor and privilege to have had the opportunity to not only attend the seminar, but to speak out for those whose voices may not always be heard.
-Melanie Ignatowski
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