Family Voices Indiana

from NHELP: Congress' attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Act will strip health care coverage from tens of millions of individuals and increase health care costs for millions more. Congressional Republicans are rushing ahead to destroy the ACA and the expansion of Medicaid.   Call your Senators  Tuesday, Jan.10    to protect health care. Call  1-888-897-9753  and tell them to vote NO on ACA repeal legislation. The Republicans' repeal bill includes no replacement for the Affordable Care Act. Instead their bill would: Yank health insurance from 30 million people, 82 percent of whom are in working families. Take coverage from the tens of millions of low and moderate income individuals who gained it through Medicaid expansion. Cause health care premiums to spike drastically for millions more. Give hundreds of billions of dollars in tax breaks to the wealthy, insurance and drug companies, while eliminating tax credits for working families. Coddl

from NDNRC: Before the holidays, we highlighted a series of state specific fact sheets released by Families USA which look at the effect a repeal of the Affordable Care Act would have on the residents of those states. Another series of state specific fact sheets has been released by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) which also looks at the effect that ACA repeal would have on consumers in individual states as well as examining the amount of federal dollars each state would lose resulting in uncompensated care in that state. Both the Families USA and CBPP fact sheets can be found on each individual state page on the NDNRC website under “State Specific Resources.” To check your state, click on the state on our “State Resource Guide Map” available  here . Also, make sure you check out our NDNRC statement entitled “Preserve the Protections Provided by the Affordable Care Act” where we call on Congress and the new Administration to protect provisions in the ACA which

From The Arc of Indiana: Does Your Family Depend on the Affordable Care Act for Insurance Coverage?   We need your help! There are serious threats facing the Affordable Care Act (ACA) – also known as Obamacare – as plans to repeal this landmark law develop. We need families and people with disabilities to contact their Senators and Representatives to let them know why the ACA is such an essential lifeline for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities, including autism, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, epilepsy and other pre-existing conditions. Congress is already working to repeal the ACA, but there is no replacement plan that details if developmental disabilities will still be covered. There is no detailed plan that states that people with pre-existing conditions will be covered. We do not know if your loved ones will be able to keep or find the coverage they need.  What can YOU do?  Contact your US Representative and Senators to tell them how the ACA has

from The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: The Republican Study Committee (RSC) health plan issued today would undo the nation’s historic progress in expanding health coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) by entirely repealing the ACA and leaving many millions of Americans who’d lose their health coverage uninsured. The plan would repeal all of the ACA by January 1, 2018, including the Medicaid expansion and the marketplace subsidies, which make coverage affordable for low- and moderate-income individuals. The estimated 20 million people who’ve gained coverage under health reform would lose it. And the millions expected to gain coverage under health reform in the future would remain uninsured. In place of the Medicaid expansion and subsidies, the plan would offer a standard tax deduction of $7,500 for individuals and $20,500 for married couples, applicable to both income and payroll taxes, to people who buy coverage on their own or through their employer. But, as our anal

from Community Catalyst: Today, Republicans in Congress  introduced a budget resolution  that includes instructions to repeal major parts of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). This is the first step in the process to repeal and delay, taking health care coverage away from 30 million, and consumer protections from millions more.  We must act now to educate our members of Congress and the public about the devastating effects of this plan. As a reminder, today’s introduction of the budget resolution kicks off a plan to use the budget reconciliation process to repeal key provisions of the ACA. Budget reconciliation only requires a simple majority to pass the Senate but limits allowable provisions to those with a direct budgetary impact. After debate and passage of this resolution, Congress will quickly begin consideration of the budget reconciliation proposal. We will keep you updated throughout the process. In response to this new development, we need to generate as much noise as possible t

For families who want to prepare for a crisis: The most important thing a family member can do is provide information. The following forms should be printed and filled-out in the case that a loved one suffers a psychiatric crisis: * NAMI Indiana Crisis Guide:  "Planning for and Responding to a Mental Health Crisis'" Crisis Plan   Medical History Form Emergency Medical Health Information When a person is in a psychiatric crisis, it is imperative to be able to get him or her into treatment as quickly as possible. This can present a very significant challenge that we hope our booklet, Planning for and Responding to a Mental Health Crisis,  will help you meet successfully. For people who are gravely disabled or in immediate danger to themselves or others: Call 911 and ask for a CIT Officer For people thinking about suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 800-273-8255 For NAMI Indiana telephone support to help plan for an impe

Welcome to the  11th edition of FV Indiana's Guide to the Legislative Session . The  Indiana General Assembly  is preparing for the 2017 legislative session that will begin on January 3 and must end no later than April 29.  This session is a "long session" where lawmakers will decide the state's next two-year budget which is typically about $30 billion . Legislators will make tough funding decisions on state government services, including education, infrastructure and public safety.  Links to help you follow are below:  Indiana General Assembly Senate Committee Chairs  and  House Committee Chairs Standing Committee Rosters Senate Committee Calendar House Committee Calendar This session will provide many opportunities for families to be involved, share your experience, and build relationships with legislators that will impact current and future decisions. This guide is intended to be a reference issue; in it you will find