Shared from inMotion | Volume 30, Issue 4 | July/August 2020, Page 14
By Mike Zwolinski
At this year’s virtual Advocacy Forum in late April, advocates from across the United States wrote to their Senators and Representatives asking them to support funding for the National Limb Loss Resource Center®. If you weren’t able to join the Advocacy Forum, don’t worry! You can still write to Congress to tell them to support people living with limb loss and limb difference who rely on the Resource Center for education and support.
As you may know, the National Limb Loss Resource Center® is the only federal program specifically for the more than 2 million Americans living with limb loss and limb difference, and the 28 million more at risk for limb loss. It is funded through the Administration for Community Living, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and it has received bipartisan support for decades. Last year, President Trump’s budget called for, and Congress supported, increased funding for the National Limb Loss Resource Center® to $4 million per year. The Amputee Coalition is asking Congress to continue that funding level for next year.
Federal funding of the Amputee Coalition’s National Limb Loss Resource Center® allows our knowledgeable specialists to provide information and services free of charge by phone or email to Americans of all ages across the country living with limb loss and limb difference. Those services are provided through our accredited call center, over 400 support groups, and over 1,000 Certified Peer Visitors, as well as provide award-winning publications, national and regional education events, career and employment resources, youth programs, and more.
You might be thinking: with the COVID-19 pandemic, is it really appropriate or okay to reach out to Congress about this? The answer is: yes! We speak regularly with our colleagues on Capitol Hill and they have asked that you weigh in with your support of this funding. Congressional staff are working on budget issues right now to keep the federal government running. They want to hear from you!
If you haven’t already, please write your Senators and Representative in support of funding for the National Limb Loss Resource® Center. You can do so easily on our website at amputee-coalition.org/takeaction. It takes 1-2 minutes to do!
Here’s what you have to do:
- First, fill in your contact information.
- You will be connected automatically to your congressional offices based on your address and zip code.
- An already-written email will appear on your screen, including key facts and figures about the National Limb Loss Resource Center®.
- Next, use the space provided to write a sentence or two about what living with limb loss and limb difference is like, and how the National Limb Loss Resource Center® can be such a helpful support to so many.
- Finally, click “submit” and you’re done! It only takes a few minutes, but it can make all the difference. Let your voice be heard!