The Partnership

When you have MS you have to form a partnership with it, but remember...

YOU are the senior partner!

Life's color

MS colors your life; but....

You chose the color!

Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week in PA

NEWS RELEASE	FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
State Rep. Robert F. “Rob” Matzie  D- Beaver/Allegheny County www.pahouse.com/Matzie

Matzie leads effort designating March 5-11 as ‘Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week’ in Pa.

HARRISBURG, Feb. 8 – Relating how his family was affected by the disease, Rep. Rob Matzie, D-Beaver/Allegheny, today urged increased awareness of Multiple Sclerosis with unanimous adoption of his resolution designating March 5 through March 11 as “Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week” in Pa.

“If you have lived with it – as I have with my father – you would want to do all you can to put a stop to this disruptive, chronic and unpredictable disease,” said Matzie, who thanked the House for its support for H.R. 59. “While environmental and genetic factors have been linked to MS, no specific cause has been discovered and there is no known cure.”

Matzie, who introduced the legislation with his fellow co-chairman of the House MS Caucus, state Rep. Marguerite Quinn, R-Bucks, said his father’s vision problems were misdiagnosed for decades.

“Misdiagnoses and misunderstandings are tragic aspects of the neurological disease, which is detected in about 200 people every week,” Matzie said. “Early symptoms that come and go may be ignored, harming patients and disrupting families from top to bottom.”

Matzie said MS affects at least twice as many women as men.

“Women between ages 20 and 40 are especially at risk,” said Matzie, who explained that MS manifests itself in various ways, including fatigue, weakness, balance problems, paralysis, blindness and depression.

“MS isn’t fatal, and it isn’t contagious, but it does affect the lives and lifespans of sufferers and hurts their loved ones because of the disease’s often mysterious relapses,” Matzie said. “Life expectancy for people with MS has increased over time because of treatment breakthroughs and improved healthcare and lifestyle changes, but we still have much more to learn about the disease.”

Matzie urged fuller understanding of MS through the National Multiple Sclerosis Society website -- www.nationalmssociety.org – and raising funds and awareness through events like Walk MS and Bike MS.

“It is our hope that by taking one week – March 5 through 11 – to focus on MS will ignite a comprehensive and ceaseless response to this disease,” Matzie said

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ATTENTION: Video of Rep. Matzie speaking about his resolution on the floor of the House is available here.

                        Photograph of resolution introduction on House floor available here.

Pennsylvania MS Awareness Week Proclamations 2017

Cities & Counties Making an MS Awareness Week (March 5-11, 2017) Proclamation :

1. Allegheny County mailing proclamation to chapter
2. Armstrong County proclaiming @ 2/16 Supervisors Meeting @ 9AM
3. Bedford County, local proclamation
4. Bethel Park Township
5. Blair County
6. Blooming Grove Township
7. Brentwood
8. Bucks County
9. Butler City
10. Cambria County
11. Canonsburg
12. Carbon County
13. Carbondaie
14. Centre County to issue at 2/28 meeting
15. Chartiers Township
16. Chester County
17. Collier Township public presentation 3/8 @ 7:00 PM
18. Crafton
19. Dauphin County
20. Dubois City
21. Elizabeth Borough, Allegheny County
22. Erie, City 
23. Erie County
24. Etna Borough
25. Fayette County
26. Franklin,City
27. Forest Township
28. Gettysburg Borough
29. Greene County will proclaim @ 3/2 mtg, need rep
30. Greensburg, City
31. Harrison Township
32. Hermitage City
33. Johnstown City
34. Lancaster, City
35. Lawrence County
36. Lebanon, City
37. Lebanon, County will act on proclamation at their 3/2 mtg.
38. McKean County
39. Mifflin County
40. Monroe County
41. Montour County proclaiming at their 2/28 mtg
42. Moon Township proclaiming at its 3/1 meeting
43. Mt. Lebanon Township
44. Mt. Oliver Borough Proclaiming at thei 2/20 Council Mtg.
45. Nanicoke City
46. Northumberland County
47. North Versailles Township
48. O'Hara Township
49. Oil City
50. Peters Township proclaimed 2/13 
51. Pittsburgh
52. Plum Borough
53. Robinson Township
54. Scott Township, Allegheny County
55. Schuylkill County
56. Somerset County
57. South Strabane Township
58. State College Borough
59. Sullivan County
60. Washington County 
61. Waynesburg Borough
62. West Mifflin
63. Westmoreland County 2/23 @ 10:30
64. Wilkes-Barre
65. York, City 

Frank's Walk MS

Replace then Repeal the Affordable Care Act

Do Not Repeal the ACA without First Protecting Patients

Senator Casey, Senator Toomey and Representative Murphy,

As your constituent and someone affected by multiple sclerosis (MS), I urge you not to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) until there is a guarantee that people living with MS will still have affordable access to the healthcare and medications they need.

The enactment of a replacement plan that maintains or improves existing coverage and affordable access for people living with MS MUST BE SIMULTANEOUS if the ACA is repealed.

MS is recognized as a chronic, inflammatory and immune-mediated disease of the central nervous system. It is among the most common causes of neurological disability in young adults. Symptoms vary from person to person and range from numbness and tingling, to walking difficulties, fatigue, dizziness, pain, depression, blindness and paralysis.

Untreated MS -- drug and other therapy for symptoms and relapses --  can progress more quickly, resulting in early departure from the workforce, undue strain on the family, finances, public and long-term services and supports, and more.

A vote to repeal the law means denying people with MS access to the health insurance coverage they need to manage their disease. I will continue to advocate for people with pre-existing conditions and the continuity of coverage through any repeal and replace efforts. Please join me in ensuring that people with MS receive the affordable, quality healthcare they need.

Sincerely,

Frank Austin

Pennsylvania Home Modification Tax Credit Bill (SB 1382)

te Senator Guy Reschenthaler:

State Senator Guy Reschenthaler:

Accessible housing includes any home modifications made to adapt living spaces to meet the needs of people with physical limitations so that they can continue to live independently and safely. While incredibly important to quality of life, home modifications can also be very costly. In addition, accessible homes are attributed to a decrease in falls which is significant because it can lower medical costs. In 2012, the Centers for Disease Control reported that 2.4 million non-fatal fall injuries were treated in emergency departments and more than 722,000 of these patients were hospitalized. As you can imagine, the cost of these falls is staggering both for the patient and the healthcare system.

As your constituent, member of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, the Society’s Pennsylvania Keystone Chapter Government Relations Advisory Committee and a person living with the diagnosis of progressive multiple sclerosis (MS), I know all too well the accessibility needs of persons living with chronic diseases like MS. This legislation would help ease the financial burden and stress associated with making a person’s home accessible and functional.

Senator Yudichak will be reintroducing legislation (SB 1382) that would establish a home modification tax credit of up to $2,000 for the first year of the program and $5,000 for the following years. The tax credit would be used to retrofit current homes for accessibility or help toward the purchase of a new accessible home. The According to the Center for Universal Design, the expense for one modification can be as high as $50,000. This bill will alleviate some of the financial burden that comes with making a home accessible and most importantly, safe for its residents.

The National MS Society supports this bill because it would help people with MS stay in their homes with dignity and independence while remaining active, productive members of their communities. Please cosponsor this important legislation.

Sincerely,

Frank Austin

Walk MS 2017

Great news! I've once again signed up for Walk MS;a charity walk to support the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and the important work they are doing to create a world free of MS. You can learn more about the walk at walkMS.org.

Multiple sclerosis is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system which interrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body. Symptoms range from numbness and tingling to blindness and paralysis. The progress, severity and specific symptoms of MS in any one person cannot yet be predicted, but advances in research and treatment are moving us closer to a world free of MS.


Most people with MS are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, with at least two to three times more women than men being diagnosed with the disease. MS affects more than 2.3 million people worldwide.


The first Walk MS event was in 1988, and since then more than $920 million has been raised for research and programs to improve the lives of people living with MS. Today, there are treatments where there weren't any before, and the dream of ending MS is becoming a reality. But there is still so much to do.


That's why I'm walking. Will you help me reach my goal by donating what you can? It's fast and easy to make a tax-deductible donation on my Personal Walk MS page. If you prefer, feel free to mail me your donation at:


Frank Austin
56 Hennig Drive
Pittsburgh PA 15236-1524


Make all checks payable to: National MS Society


Thank you so much for helping me reach my goal and supporting this worthy cause. 


Warmly,
Frank Austin