June 2021 Newsletter

Greetings! 

Welcome to our #MEAction Colorado newsletter. We hope you find some valuable information in these newsletters. If you want to contribute to our next newsletter or have comments and suggestions, please let us know. 

Sincerely,
Jim Lutey, Editor jimlutey@gmail.com 
Emergency Fund
by John Kelty, Chair, ME Action Colorado

We still have funding in the CO Emergency Fund which can supply up to $250 for certain needs to those who qualify. The process is really easy and if you have any questions or issues with the application, please contact 

Colorado House Legislative Session
By Tom Strobel, Steering Committee Member, ME Action Colorado

We at ME Action Colorado are having a busy spring during the Colorado Legislative session. One venture has gone well and the second one appears to be running out of time and traction as the session closes. We are wiser and more experienced now, though, and may be more successful next year in hitting some version of the second one out of the ballpark.
 
The legislative success this year was getting a tribute to ME/CFS read in the Colorado Legislature by Rep. Alex Valdez declaring May 12 “Myalgic Encephalomyelitis Awareness Day”. This tribute talked about some facts about ME and tied it to the Long COVID onslaught that is underway. The tribute begins about 23 minutes into the video. You may ask: how does this help? Well, it gets the words ME & CFS out to a little wider swath of the public, in this case policymakers (who may have never of the terms before) and connects it to Long COVID. Is this an immediate game changer? Unlikely, but getting the terms out helps and long voyages begin with a few steps. 
The other effort was far more ambitious. Thanks largely to Anneliese Steel, who’s a ME Action Colorado member and a lobbyist (though not formally for ME Action), we found ourselves with the opportunity to legislatively create a task force to study Long COVID and other post-viral infections like ME in Colorado. The task force would create a report to the House and Senate committees and Senate Health and Human Services committee next year with recommendations regarding potential research funding and educational outreach for health professionals in 2022.
John Kelty with Rep.
Alex Valdez
 
This was exciting! We met with a few State Senators and more Representatives to pitch our idea. We met with members from two of the state health agencies, CDPHE (Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment) and HCPF (Department of Health Care Policy and Financing). To make a long story short, everyone we talked to liked the idea. One state agency thought it was great but that they weren’t the ones to do it; the other agreed that it was great, agreed to investigate it and ultimately didn’t do enough to help us. At this point in the legislative calendar, this bill hasn’t grown the legs necessary to make its way but will serve as a project for us to pursue next year with better preparation and more time and connections.
Upcoming Calendar of Events in Colorado
June 3, 12:00 Writing from our ME Lives

June 10, 12:00 Writing from our ME Lives


June 17, 12:00 Writing from our ME Lives

June 24, 12:00 Writing from our ME Lives


If you have any questions or have any upcoming events for next month's calendar, please contact John Kelty at john.kelty@meaction.net.  

Colorado advocates for people with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, their caregivers and allies. Join our FB group MEACTIONCO. Follow us on
Twitter and Instagram @MeactionCO
Disclaimer: 
 
Newsletter volunteers are NOT medical professionals; we are patients, allies and caregivers sharing our own experiences. What you do with the information offered is at your own risk and is your responsibility. Always try to work with a good doctor and/or medical professional and please consult him/her for your personal medical decisions. Please note that none of the information on this site has been evaluated by the FDA. It is shared for support and educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease or illness. Please do not make major changes in diet or exercise without discussing them with your physician and/or medical professional. Never begin taking any supplement without discussing it with your physician and/or medical professional, and never stop taking any prescription medications unless directed to do so by your physician and/or medical professional. The opinions expressed in this newsletter are those of the submitter and not of the newsletter volunteers or MEAction.