NRL News
Page 13
April 2007
Volume 34
Issue 4

Legislative Action Alert:
Prevent Government Rationing of
Lifesaving Treatment and Drugs under Medicare

Congress is now making decisions that could affect whether older Americans live or die because they are prevented from using their own money to avoid involuntary denial of lifesaving medical treatment (see page one of March issue of NRL News) and drugs (see President’s column on page 3 and page 21 of the February NRL News).

URGENT! Please contact your U.S. senators and representative with this basic message:
In order to protect senior citizens’ lives, we must ensure their right to get unrationed medical care and an unrationed prescription drug benefit under Medicare. We must not prohibit older Americans from adding their own money, if they wish, to get unrationed insurance.

Ask your two U.S. senators to:

1. Oppose repeal of the “private fee-for-service” option in Medicare.

2. Vote AGAINST cloture on a bill that would impose government drug price-fixing in Medicare, thus limiting older Americans’ access to innovative lifesaving drugs when they choose to add their own money to get a private fee-for-service plan.

Ask your House of Representatives member to:

1. Oppose repeal of the “private fee-for-service” option in Medicare.

Because of post-9/11 security screening requirements, postal mail, to be effective, is best sent to the LOCAL instead of the Washington office, which you may locate in your local phone book or by going to http://[insert senator’s last name].senate.gov and http://www.house.gov/house/MemberWWW.shtml.

You can send an e-mail by going to www.nrlc.org, clicking on Legislative Action Center, clicking on the Medicare link in the left column, and following the links to take action; and/or

You can call your representative’s and senators’ state offices (see local phone book) or go through the Capitol Switchboard: 202-224-3121 (Senate) or 202-225-3121 (House).