The way the current regulations are set up each dispensary has a different hardship program. This will cause good programs to be over run and will allow bad programs to avoid giving back to the community. It shouldn't matter where in the state you live to receive care, compassion, and quality of service from a state run program. The amendment would change the wording from allowing individual dispensaries to make whatever program they like and instead make a structured hardship program that will actually help needy patients.

Congress has ruined the Affordable Healthcare Act for the American Citizen. They have tagged it Obamacare. What it should be is healthcare for all American Citizens. Congress says they want to overhaul it. Now is the time. Now is the time to do it right.

The Affordable Care Act has given new hope to millions of people who previously had no hope of getting health insurance or the medical care they desperately needed. The Affordable Care Act has helped slow the rising cost of medical care. The Affordable Care Act is protecting millions of Americans from being bankrupted by sky high medical bills. The Affordable Care Act would be protecting millions more if some states weren't politically blockading the Medicaid Expansion while their citizens die for lack of care. The Affordable Care Act IS WORKING. As the new majority in both the Senate and House of Representatives lay their plans to repeal the Affordable Care Act, we insist they call it by its true name, that the media call it by its true name, so that everyone knows repealing the Affordable Care Act will simply make medical care UNAFFORDABLE once again.

THE PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES SHOULD NOT BE THE ONLY INDUSTRIAL COUNTRY THAT DOES NOT TAKE CARE OF THEIR CITIZENS, AND MAKE IT NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE TO GET FAIR AND AFFORDABLE HEALTH INSURANCE!

Every day in this country an estimated 187 people die from drug overdose, and another 6,748 are treated in emergency rooms. That averages out to an overdose related hospitalization every 13 seconds and an overdose death every 7½ minutes. Drug overdose is now the leading cause of accidental death in the United States, outstripping traffic fatalities and gun homicides. And every year it gets worse. In addition to the terrible human toll, substance abuse costs the U.S. economy between $500 billion and One Trillion Dollars annually, depending on what is counted as a cost. Effective treatment can dramatically reduce these staggering numbers. According to several conservative estimates, every dollar invested in addiction treatment programs yields a return of between $4 and $7 in reduced drug-related crime, criminal justice costs, and theft. When savings related to healthcare are included, total savings can exceed costs by a ratio of 12 to 1. My 24-year-old son, Anthony, died May 31, 2014, following a six-year battle with opioid and heroin addiction that included three unsuccessful short term treatment programs, each lasting less than 30 days, which was all that insurance would pay for. For most people, this is simply not enough time to recover from the assault addictive drugs make on the body and to restore the life skills that keep a person from relapsing. It wasn’t enough for Anthony. Research tells us that effective inpatient treatment leads to long term sobriety and fewer relapses. Ninety (90) day residential drug rehab is suggested by professionals as the minimum length of time for effective treatment. Anecdotal evidence gathered from post discharge patient interviews suggests that long-term treatment at a drug rehab facility can decrease the risk of relapse by up to 73%. That can mean the difference between addiction and recovery—or even life and death. Tell your U.S. Senators and representatives: Legislation must be enacted immediately to provide for a minimum of Ninety (90) days inpatient drug or alcohol treatment days per year at a facility certified to provide such care by the appropriate authority in the state in which it is located.

CDC, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is on the front lines to prevent the spread of Ebola in the United States. They coordinate safety standards for medical facilities and medical workers in the U.S., and recently have updated those standards to deal with the Ebola threat. They also have sent public health experts to help control the Ebola epidemic in West Africa, which experts see as vitally important to keeping Ebola out of the United States. Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority was created by a bipartisan effort in Congress in 2005 to develop partnerships between the drug industry and government agencies to streamline the development of medical measures and stockpiling of vaccines and medications to fight public health crises, including emerging epidemics such as Ebola. National Institutes of Health, the largest biomedical research institution in the world, has been responsible for numerous advances in medical science. It coordinates and funds health-related research in hundreds of universities and laboratories in the U.S. Wikipedia says the scientific community considers the current low level of NIH funding to be a crisis in America, including the possibility that our research scientists will be lured away by China. If you want more information on this subject, here are facts and figures from members of Congress who are on committees which oversee federal health policy: Representative Anna Eshoo, D-California, and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, D-Rhode Island, reported on CNN online on October 30 that “Despite the tireless efforts of many health professionals, progress against Ebola and other diseases has been slowed by federal budget cuts. To boost our efforts to prevent epidemics, federal investment in biomedical research should be revived. ... “The trouble is that investment in key agencies like NIH and CDC -- the world's foremost biomedical research and public health institutions -- has fallen dramatically in recent years. “Between 2010 and 2013, the CDC saw over a billion dollars slashed from its budget. The purchasing power at the NIH, meanwhile, has been cut 10% over the last four years. And since 2010, the Hospital Preparedness Program, which provides resources to community hospitals for public health emergencies, has been cut by 44%, when adjusted for inflation. U.S. global health programs alone have lost over $400 million. ... “A look further back reveals even deeper cuts to biomedical research budgets. As a percentage of the total federal budget, we spend two-thirds less on research and development today than we did in 1965. At NIH, the number of research grants the agency is able to fund has declined every year since 2004. ...” You can add your direct message to the Republican leaders in Congress in Comments as you sign the petition.

I'm not a government employee, a healthcare official, and I'm the farthest person from a politician, I'm just your average American citizen who like every other American is bombarded with Ebola news. It seems like everyday there's some type of Ebola scare somewhere in the country and it's getting ridiculous. The solution is very simple... JUST DON'T LET IT IN OUR COUNTRY. We need to lock down all airports and not even let passengers off the plane if there's a suspicion. Or at the very least, Just like Governor Chris Christi, have it mandatory that any passenger flying from one of the Western African countries into NJ be quarantined. It's time we americans become jerks and do what's necessary to protect OUR people from this horrendous virus. If an outbreak happens somewhere over here, how many other countries do you think will be coming over to help us. The answer is none, not even our UK friends. Just take a look back at different catastrophes that we've had such as Hurricanes Andrew, Katrina, Sandy, all of the countless tornadoes that ripped through our country, all of the forest fires and snow storms where multiple states have lost power. Yes these are totally different, but if we never received any help from other countries for non contagious situations, do you really think we'd get any help if this spreads and people start dying as a result. Since before would war 1, the US has been helping other countries and even intervening when things started to get bad in some situations just like how we just sent 3000 troops over to west Africa to build hospitals to treat the virus. We spend Trillions of our tax dollars to help these countries and for what. It's seriously time we start minding our own business and just focus on taking care of ourselves and there's no time to do just that like the present. It seems like since we heard about the outbreak in Africa, we've only been hearing about little incidents popping up in different areas of the US. You never hear about incidents in other countries. It's as if the infected or potentially infected are ONLY trying to come here. If we're not aggressive and vigilant about this virus now, it's going to get out of control. At this very moment, the European Union has gone to the World Health Organization because they want to restrict all flights from West African countries from coming into Europe. So the Europeans are taking drastic measures to protect themselves, we should be doing the exact same thing to protect our people. So what's going to happen when flights are restricted from going into Europe? They're all going to come directly to America thus rapidly increasing our chances of coming in contact with the virus. After 9/11, we all came together as Americans against terrorism and once again we need to do the same. Except this time to protect ourselves, our family, and our friends from coming in contact with a virus that has the potential of becoming a fast spreading plague. That's all I'm saying and these are just my observations and opinions. I'm a man who will do anything to protect my family and I'm sure you all feel the same. If you agree, then please sign this petition and forward the link on your social media websites so others can sign. I'm only saying what a lot of us Americans are thinking, and I don't want to just sit around and watch this happen when I know deep in my heart how serious this is. Maybe some politician somewhere will see this and actually try to do something that's guaranteed to keep this virus out of our country. WE ARE THE CITIZENS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND WE DEMAND OUR VOICES BE HEARD.

Kaci Hickox is showing a direct disregard for the health and well being of the Public by not complying with Federal and State regulations.

Some are afraid of having her back in Maine!

Between the ages of 18 and 24 are the years during which most mental illnesses are diagnosed. Adding psychiatric services to the current health services system at TWU will give students the opportunity to see a psychiatrist, be diagnosed, and receive the proper treatment including medication. In order for those living with mental health concerns to receive disability services, a diagnosis must be made, having psychiatric services on campus will allow all students living with mental illness to receive support services.

Petition to grant Eric Gunnels eligibility for disability due to epilepsy.

I've recently been rejected three times by the Veterans Administration (VA) for restorative work on my rotted teeth and jaw. I believe that I am qualified for such care under the law already in existence, but the VA disagrees. In addition to me, there are probably up to 8.6 million veterans in the VA Healthcare System who are receiving no dental care whatsoever, and the very rare few (perhaps up to 5 percent) who are receiving very substandard dental care. This needs to end, and veterans and those who agree with this petition need to sign it and pass it on.