Feb
28
2008
Brain Injury Awareness Fair
10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
First Floor Foyer of the Rayburn House Office Building
Congressional Briefing on “Traumatic Brain Injury and Community Needs”
3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
1116 Longworth House Office Building
Congressional Reception Celebrating Brain Injury Awareness Day
5:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
2105 Rayburn House Office Building
Please RSVP by Monday, March 3, 2008, to Hope Mandel in Congressman Bill Pascrell’s office if you wish to attend and/or exhibit materials during the Awareness Fair. You may also contact Hope at (202) 225-5751 or Becky Wolfkiel in Congressman Platts’ office at (202) 225-5836 with questions or for more information. In addition, as always, you may contact Laura Schiebelhut, BIAA’s Director of Government Affairs, at lschiebelhut@biausa.org, or 703-761-0750 ext. 637, for further clarification.
Feb
28
2008
The Congressional Brain Injury Task Force is hosting a “2008 Brain Injury Awareness Day,” on Capitol Hill, March 12, 2008.
To celebrate March as Brain Injury Awareness Month, the Congressional Brain Injury Task Force is hosting a “2008 Brain Injury Awareness Day,” on Wednesday, March 12, 2008, on Capitol Hill.
Multiple events are planned, which are designed to educate Members of Congress and their staff about brain injury. These events include an Awareness Day Fair, which will feature exhibits and informational materials from individuals and organizations working in the field of brain injury. The day will also include a Congressional Briefing focused on the topic of “Traumatic Brain Injury and Community Needs.” The end of the day will feature an early-evening Congressional Reception sponsored by various national advocacy organizations, including the National Brain Injury Treatment and Training Foundation (NBIRTT), the Brain Injury Association of America (BIAA), the National Disability Rights Network (NDRN) and the National Association of State Head Injury Administrators (NASHIA).
BIAA invites all advocates to attend “2008 Brain Injury Awareness Day” events, and help educate Members of Congress and their staff. The Day also represents an important opportunity to network with others interested in helping increase brain injury awareness. click here for more…
Feb
25
2008
The Exxon Valdez litigation is coming to head….major news this week about the 2 decade long trial and new results on the people of Prince William Sound.
When a federal jury in Alaska in 1994 ordered Exxon to pay $5 billion to thousands of people who had their lives disrupted by the massive Exxon Valdez oil spill, an appeal of the nation’s largest punitive damages award was inevitable.
For more…click here
Feb
20
2008
Effective: January 1, 2006
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Feb
19
2008
Also this week, both chambers of Congress held important hearings on efforts to improve health care for returning service members, as well as to improve the veterans’ disability benefits system. BIAA submitted questions and comments in relation to several of the hearings.
The Senate Armed Services Committee held a hearing on “Care for Sick and Wounded Service Members” on Tuesday, February 13. BIAA submitted questions for the hearing regarding TRICARE coverage of cognitive rehabilitation.
On Thursday, he House Veterans Affairs Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee held a hearing on the VA’s disability claims system. BIAA submitted its recent Comment Letter on a Proposed Rule by the Department of Veterans Affairs to overhaul the Schedule for Rating Disability related to TBI to the House Committee on Veterans Affairs.
To view a copy of BIAA’s Comment Letter to the VA, please visit our website at http://www.biausa.org/policyissues.htm.
Feb
19
2008
The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (Labor-HHS-Ed) held a hearing on Thursday on this year’s proposed budget for the Department of Health and Human Services, featuring HHS Secretary Michael Leavitt as a witness. At the same time, BIAA signed on this week to a coalition letter to the Subcommittee urging its Members to provide $30 million for TBI Act programs this year.
BIAA also signed on to a coalition letter urging Members of Congress to increase funding for all aspects of public health included in the Function 550/discretionary budget allocation in Fiscal Year 2009 by $5.3 billion.
The letter states:
“Our nation struggles with escalating health care costs, growing numbers of uninsured, and the prospect of declining health measured by overall morbidity and mortality. The President’s budget for FY 2009 continues to seriously underfund and undermine an important part of the solution: public health activities and programs…The undersigned organizations urge you to increase funding for all aspects of public health…by an amount that will: 1) restore funding cuts to public health programs enacted in FY 2006; 2) restore lost purchasing power that flat-funding for at least five years has eroded and 3) provide investments that begin to truly meet health challenges facing the nation.”
The three federal agencies charged with implementing TBI Act programs – the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) – received either flat or significantly decreased funding in the President’s Budget.
A key legislative priority for BIAA this year is to work to prevent any cuts in funding for TBI programs from occurring and to instead achieve a significant increase in federal support for TBI programs. Stay tuned for BIAA Legislative Action Alerts regarding TBI-related appropriations.
Feb
09
2008
By the end of this week, Congress was able to reach a compromise between the House and the Senate and pass a final economic stimulus measure. This measure (H.R. 5140), which is now headed to President Bush, who is expected to sign it into law, unfortunately does not contain increased Medicaid payments to states, which BIAA had strongly supported.
A second economic stimulus package could possibly emerge in the next few weeks and months, and BIAA will continue to support increasing federal Medicaid reimbursement rates to states in order to prevent states from being forced to cut back their Medicaid programs.
Feb
09
2008
Also this week, BIAA submitted a Comment Letter on a Proposed Rule by the Department of Veterans Affairs to overhaul the Schedule for Rating Disability when it comes to TBI.
Although BIAA’s letter acknowledges that the Proposed Rule constitutes an improvement from current regulations, it also communicates several concerns and suggestions for further improvement of the disability ratings system in regards to TBI.
To view a copy of BIAA’s Comment Letter to the VA, please visit our website at http://www.biausa.org/policyissues.htm.
Feb
09
2008
The President released his Fiscal 2009 Budget on Monday, February 4, and once again, this year’s Budget proposes to eliminate funding for the TBI Act HRSA state grant program. BIAA issued a press release condemning the President’s Budget on Monday afternoon. To view a copy of BIAA’s Press Release, please visit our website at http://www.biausa.org/policyissues.htm. Continue Reading »
