Right this wrong: support this bill.
Fri Sep 28, 2007 at 09:11:20 AM PDT
Under current law, if you become disabled due to sickness or injury, you must wait 29 months before you get Medicare. This foolish policy causes much suffering.
A bill has just been introduced in both houses of Congress that would eliminate at least 24 months of this waiting period. Below the fold: an easy link to locate your Congressional reps and their contact info, and an easy cut-and-paste letter to urge them to support the Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2007.
I make my living by representing disabled people fighting for their Social Security disability benefits. Because of what I do, I see daily the suffering caused by a foolish policy of our government. We now have an opportunity to right this wrong.
Under current law, a person found disabled by the Social Security Administration must wait 29 months to receive Medicare coverage. (5 months for cash benefits to start, plus an additional 24 months for Medicare.) During these 29 months, the disabled person is by definition too sick or injured to work. IF she had health insurance in her old job, she can continue it for 18 months, and in some cases for the full 29 months – but ONLY if she can pay the full premium (what she was paying before, PLUS what her employer was paying before). Needless to say, almost no one who has lost her job due to medical problems can afford to do this. Many of these people might, with proper treatment, recover their ability to work. Without it, they all suffer, and some worsen medically to the point they will never be able to work again.
A bill has been introduced in both houses of Congress that would end the 24-month portion of the waiting period. It is called – no surprise – the "Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2007." At the bottom of this diary, I have pasted in sample letters to Congress (in this case, Georgia Senators Isakson and Chambliss, and Georgia Representative Scott – including their fax numbers and snail-mail addresses), urging them to cosponsor this legislation. If you like, you may simply cut-and-paste these letters into your word processor or email program. (Note: I have been informed by those who should know that snail-mail makes a bigger impact than a fax, and that a fax makes a bigger impact than an email.)
You may get up-to-date information on the status of the House version of the Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2007 from the Library of Congress website (thomas.gov) here. The Senate version was just introduced Wednesday (9/26/07) by Sen. Bingaman of New Mexico, and will probably be on thomas.gov soon. The House version was introduced by Rep. Green of Texas.
To easily find your Congressional representatives and their contact information, enter your state and zip code here.
Thank you for reading this. I hope you will agree the Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2007 is important enough to support.
Sample letters follow.
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Hon. Johnny Isakson
United States Senator
120 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510-1004
Fax no. (202) 228-0724
Re: Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2007
Dear Senator Isakson:
Senator Bingaman of New Mexico has recently introduced the Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2007. This bill would end a great injustice. Under current law, someone found disabled by the Social Security Administration must wait 29 months before he or she is eligible for Medicare. Not only does this cause great suffering, it also prevents people from getting treatment that might restore their ability to work and get them off the disability rolls.
I respectfully urge you to cosponsor the Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2007.
I also urge you to sponsor an amendment that would eliminate the full 29-month waiting period, not just the 24-month portion. (The 24 months is currently calculated from the END of the 5-month waiting period for Social Security monthly cash benefits.)
Sincerely,
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Hon. Saxby Chambliss
United States Senator
416 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510-1005
Fax no. 202-224-0103
Re: Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2007.
Dear Senator Chambliss:
Senator Bingaman of New Mexico has recently introduced the Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2007. This bill would end a great injustice. Under current law, someone found disabled by the Social Security Administration must wait 29 months before he or she is eligible for Medicare. Not only does this cause great suffering, it also prevents people from getting treatment that might restore their ability to work and get them off the disability rolls.
I respectfully urge you to cosponsor the Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2007.
I also urge you to sponsor an amendment that would eliminate the full 29-month waiting period, not just the 24-month portion. (The 24 months is currently calculated from the END of the 5-month waiting period for Social Security monthly cash benefits.)
Sincerely,
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Hon. David Scott
United States Representative
417 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515-1013
Fax no. (202) 225 - 4628
Re: H. R. 154 - Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2007.
Dear Congressman Scott:
Rep. Green of Texas has recently introduced the Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2007. This bill would end a great injustice. Under current law, someone found disabled by the Social Security Administration must wait 29 months before he or she is eligible for Medicare. Not only does this cause great suffering, it also prevents people from getting treatment that might restore their ability to work and get them off the disability rolls.
I respectfully urge you to cosponsor the Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2007.
I also urge you to sponsor an amendment that would eliminate the full 29-month waiting period, not just the 24-month portion. (The 24 months is currently calculated from the END of the 5-month waiting period for Social Security monthly cash benefits.)
Sincerely,
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