Migraines and Health Care Reform - ACT NOW!

Good morning, everyone!

I've been hearing from many of you that you share you share my concerns and even fears about health care reform. Recently, I've been working with the National Patient Advocate Foundation (NPAF), and the NPAF has been working hard to stay on top of what's going on with health care reform legislation and when writing to our Senators and members of the House can give US a chance to help shape health care reform.

NOW is one of those times when our input is vitally important. Below, I'm copying for you an Action alert from the NPAF about emailing our Senators. The NPAF uses the same system for this that the Alliance for Headache Disorders Advocacy does, so if you've taken part in those alerts, you know how quick and simple it is.

A letter telling our Senators what we need from them has already been written for us. When we follow the "Take Action Link," we're taken directly to that letter. If you'd like you can add a bit to it. If not, just send it as it is. The system will automatically send it to your senators when you enter your mailing address at the end. I just sent mine, and it took me 6 MINUTES. Literally, six minutes, including the time I took to add a personal paragraph for my Senators, Byrd and Rockefeller. I timed it so I could tell you.

So, now I'm asking each of you to spend just a few minutes to send an email to your senators. Please? OK. Pretty please with a cherry on top? I'm going to include the email and link that I got from the NAPF below.

Please do this -- for yourself, for me, for your children and grandchildren.
For the future. Please?

With a hug,

Your Senators Need to Hear From You! Insurance Market Reforms & Affordability Are Critically Important to Patients.

Take Action!

Last week, we informed you that the Senate Finance Committee is currently debating and marking-up health care reform legislation that intends to provide all Americans with access to affordable, high-quality health coverage. While the NPAF is pleased to report that the legislation, "America's Healthy Future Act," eliminates preexisting conditions, caps out-of-pocket spending, and eliminates annual & lifetime limits on coverage, there is still room for significant improvement and your action is needed now!!

As the legislation is currently drafted, the insurance market reforms mentioned above (preexisting conditions, out-of-pocket spending, and annual/lifetime limits) will not be fully implemented until 2022. In the small group market, states are given five years beginning January 1, 2013 to phase-in insurance market reforms. And in the large group and self-insured markets, states are given five years beginning January 1, 2017 to phase-in insurance market reforms like the elimination of preexisting condition and a cap on out-of-pocket expenses. NPAF believes Congress can do better, and we support implementing insurance market reforms for all markets as quickly as possible after enactment of the legislation!