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 As an advocate for people with disabilities and provider of home and community based services, Easter Seals Southeast Wisconsin has a significant interest in Federal support of medical and health related services that assist people with disabilities to lead more independent lives.
Easter Seals assists members of Congress and their staff, White House and federal agency officials, and representatives of other national interests -- as well as citizens like you -- to understand and act in support of policies and programs that help people with disabilities to live with equality, dignity and independence.
Easter Seals' legislative efforts focus on health care, early intervention, child care, education, employment, housing, supports for older Americans, recreation, assistive technology, transportation, and nonprofit organization operations.
U.S. Representative Paul Ryan visited Easter Seals Southeast Wisconsin's Child Development Center. Mr. Ryan sang with children in the Birth to Three Program, toured the facility, and took time to listen to the needs and concerns of board members, staff and program participants.
You Can Help!
Join Easter Seals today in educating and informing public officials about issues that affect individuals with disabilities. View Easter Seals Action Alerts and contact your legislators now!
What's New in Legislative Action
Next Tuesday, October 20th, hundreds of Easter Seals volunteers and clients will take to Capitol Hill.
They'll bring Congress a clear message: people with disabilities and their families should have affordable health care that provides the services they need, when they need them.
Each day, decisions are being made in Washington, D.C. that will affect people with disabilities and Easter Seals' ability to provide services to them, as well as to meet Easter Seals' mission today and for years to come. The unmet needs of people with disabilities will continue to go unaddressed if Easter Seals is not engaged in educating public policy makers about people with disabilities' disproportionate reliance on government for health, education, employment, transportation and other needed services.
How can you help? While every Easter Seals supporter can’t be in Washington, D.C., plans are underway to rally Easter Seals advocates across the country to make sure our Capitol Hill Day message is heard loud and clear.
- Email Congress to advance Easter Seals’ message. A special Capitol Hill Day email action alert will be promoted on easterseals.com and by email campaign to Easter Seals supporters before October 20th, helping to reinforce our message and presence on Capitol Hill.
- Follow Capitol Hill Day updates on Twitter (@Easter_Seals) and spread the word using the Capitol Hill Day hashtag #CapHill09.
- Promote Capitol Hill Day on Facebook. The Easter Seals Fan page will feature Capitol Hill Day actions and encourage fans to share Easter Seals’ Capitol Hill Day message.
- Upload and share pictures on Facebook and Twitter. Easter Seals staff and supporters will be invited to upload pictures to the Easter Seals Facebook Fan page, and tweet pics using http://twitpic.com/ and hashtag #CapHill09.
Tweet Congress members on October 20th about our Capitol Hill Day message. To find your legislator’s Twitter feed, go to http://tweetcongress.org/. - Spread the word to friends and colleagues. All of the online activities and social network pages will have easy ways to forward messages and get friends and colleagues involved in supporting Easter Seals Capitol Hill Day.
- Call-in script. For supporters who prefer to pick up the phone, talking points and a look-up directory with legislators’ telephone numbers will be available on http://www.easterseals.com/ to use as a guide when calling Capitol Hill offices.
Family Care Expansion
See how you can help over 3000 individuals that are on the waiting list for services in Milwaukee County!
Proposed Health Insurance Reform
It’s impossible to turn on the television or pick up the newspaper without seeing something about the health care reform debate. The facts here will help you navigate this complex topic and help you understand why Easter Seals believes it is essential for Congress to enact comprehensive health insurance reform.
Two Wisconsin State Officials Nominated as Easter Seals Outstanding Advocate of the Year
Easter Seals Southeast Wisconsin and Easter Seals Wisconsin has nominated Wisconsin State Representative, Kim Hixson and Wisconsin State Senator, Judith Robson for the 2009 Easter Seals Outstanding Advocate Award. Both will be honored in Washington D.C. this October.
Both Senator Robson and Representative Hixson were nominated for:
- Their leadership in proposing mandating healthcare insurance companies must cover autism services.
- Both of these elected representatives listened to families living with autism in crafting the legislation.
- They expanded services offered beyond just Applied Behavioral Analysis to include on-going services such as PLAY Project and included other professionals such as speech therapist to be authorized in delivering the need autism interventions.
- They have been vocal advocates for those living with Autism.
- Thanks to their efforts Wisconsin citizens will have coverage for Autism services in early 2010.
- Examples of their leadership and support of SB178/AB41.
View the official nomination
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