62 million Americans suffer from "essential" or "primary" hypertension - which NIH offers "has no known etiology". This costs Americans ~$80B/year on medication and related medical costs. The number of Americans affected is growing rapidly as the baby boomer population moves into maturity. The fact is that sub-optimal breathing, breathing with insufficient depth, is the fundamental cause of essential hypertension. Anyone suffering from hypertension can test this by checking their blood pressure before and after a period of relatively slow deep breathing. The silence by NIH and the American Heart Association amounts to lying by omission, the only plausible explanation being to benefit the medical-industrial complex - specifically big pharma who nets many 10s of billions of dollars every year from the unsuspecting. Americans fund the NIH through our taxes, however their policies aim to benefit the industrial establishment vs. American citizens. Please stand with me to demand that the NIH end their silence regarding sub-optimal breathing and high blood pressure. Thank you.

The lack of long-term psychiatric facilities for the seriously mentally ill needs to be addressed, and the need for excellent long-term and permanent psychiatric care should be a priority in congress NOW.

Please do not give up on our children in Special Education; they are not a lost cause! Students with Special Needs are being targeted and DISCRIMINATED against as you try and balance your state budget on their backs. The success my daughter, and many other students, have in school is because of these regulations which afford them the opportunity to succeed. I know many students that have graduated High School with the help of an IEP and have gone on to college and are on track to be independent, productive members of society. By striking down the regulations; you will be discriminating against my daughter and telling the students with special needs, in the state of New York, that you do not believe in them.

Children and young people on the Autism spectrum deserve insurance coverage for autism-related therapies! Sign the petition! We are so grateful to Senator Jim Tracy & Representative Kevin Brooks for filing Autism Insurance Reform bill SB1286/HB1265! Studies show that Autism treatments like behavior therapy can make all the difference in the world for a young person on the Autism spectrum, and give our kids their best chance to become independent adults. However, the vast majority of Tennessee Autism families cannot afford these therapies for their children, because unlike 32 other states such as Arkansas, Kentucky, and Missouri where similar legislation has already been passed, the Tennessee insurance industry REFUSES to provide coverage for Autism treatments. Please sign the petition, and help us let our Tennessee legislators know that Autism Insurance Reform bill SB1286/HB1265 must become law in 2013 -- it just makes good fiscal sense for our state! We have wide bi-partisan support for this bill, and as of this writing have 30 legislators from across Tennessee who have already signed on as co-sponsors! Passing this legislation as soon as possible means that more children with Autism in Tennessee will receive the treatments they need to grow up to be contributing citizens, and our families need insurance coverage NOW. For some, Autism therapies can mean the difference between becoming a taxpayer… or not. Please help Autism families in Tennessee -- support Autism Insurance Reform SB1286/HB1265 and help it become *law* in 2013!

PETITION IN SUPPORT OF SENATE BILL 320 (BEALL) We, the undersigned, as persons with brain injury, family members, caregivers, friends, and/or professionals serving persons with brain injury, hereby pledge our support for Senate Bill 320 (Beall).

Has been proven to be a medically posative treatment for many different needs. Our Vets have been denied treatment for cannabis posative blood testing. North Carolina will benefit from jobs created by the new industry. North Carolina will prosper from taxation of this medical treatment.

Healthcare for everyone including student and children remaining on parents healthcare

Gov. Jindal has made devastating cuts to our state mental health care safety net. The closing of Southeast Louisiana Hospital has severely devastated the access to indigent health services for the mentally ill in the greater New Orleans area. The governor seems determined to continue these cuts statewide, so this will eventually affect the entire state.

My daughter is offically diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder(ASD); without a proper diagnosis she would never have been able to do as well as she is doing. Without proper diagnosis children cannot get proper treatment; without proper treatment they cannot succeed. All my life and today, I struggle with significant issues stemming from a now-diagnosed ASD. After years of trying to access an ASD screening, I finally have been given a late-in-life diagnosis of an ASD, at age 53. Even adults with an official ASD diagnosis often cannot access services and those without a diagnosis suffer much. Funds are badly needed for adults with suspected or diagnosed ASDs. Autiism affects all of us because the population of people of all ages with suspected or actual ASDs is only increasing. Please join me in calling on the US Government to address the current crisis of those of us in the autism community! Thank you.

A four-year member of your Dental Quality Assurance Commission resigned in protest because cases were secretly closed, and dentists were not sanctioned for multiple cases that resulted in death. The former commission member sent you a long, detailed expose, which included a 5-part investigative series from the Seattle Post Intelligencer, but he received no response. I am but one of the many victims of dental malpractice in Washington State whose dentist is still practicing, because patients can't compete against lawyers hired by dental malpractice insurance companies, and DQAC routinely closes egregious cases without applying sanctions.

The Veterans of West Virginia have been asking our State Government to build a drastically needed Veterans Nursing Home at the Beckley VA Medical Center. There is currently 150 veterans waiting to get into the Clarksburg Veterans Nursing Home and to date all we hear is the State does not have the money.

My dear friend Elizabeth Espat suffered a brain injury (aneurism) in October 2012, and has been through incredible physical trauma in the past five months: multiple surgeries (coil insertion, decompressive hemicraniectomy, tracheotomy), seizures, strokes, and a medically induced coma. She is currently in a persistent vegetative state at a local Skilled Nursing Facility, where she is awaiting clearance for surgery. The surgery is a required step which would allow her to progress to the next stage of recovery. With every day that goes by, her SNF benefits diminish due to limitations of her health insurance PPO. Her brain and body need ample time to repair, reconnect, and heal so that she can begin rehabilitation. SB 320 will enable uniform and non-discriminatory access to treatment for acquired brain injury across an established continuum of licensed treatment settings specifically designed to provide the most clinically effective and cost efficient specialized treatment for acquired brain injury and to ensure that acquired brain injury as a catastrophic health condition is treated on par with other major medical conditions which have no time limitations. Thank you - Kris Homsher