Tell Your Senators that #WhatWeNeed in the
Next COVID-19 Relief Package in #HCBS Funding!
Contact your Senators Today!

Join us for a call-in day on Tuesday August 4 to push for the inclusion of dedicated funding for home and community-based services (HCBS) in the new coronavirus relief legislation being negotiated in the Senate!

We need you to share your story and encourage others to share their stories with their Senators using the hashtags #HCBS and #WhatWeNeed!

Information on contacting your Senators, call and email scripts, and more are available on this website. You can also find the latest updates available on the Facebook event and encourage everyone to please RSVP and spread the word!

The Senate is currently negotiating this final package,
and it is critical that they hear from us!
It's quick and easy to have your voice heard.

Watch this video for an to learn how to make a call to your Senators in 3 minutes or less!!!
Even if you’ve called or emailed before, or shared your HCBS story on social media, we need you to contact your Senators again. It’s urgent that they hear from as many of us as possible, as soon as possible to get dedicated HCBS funding included in the bill.
What can I do? 

APSE urges our members to Contact Your Senators TODAY!

Sample call-in and e-mail scripts are below, as are instructions for reaching out to your Senators via social media.
Advocacy in Action:
Steps To Take TODAY!

Ways to engage:

  • Call your Senators (U.S. Capitol Switchboard: 202-224-3121 voice or 202-224-3091 tty, ask to be connected to your Senators)
  • Provide your name and city/zip code where you live
  • Share your personal stories or use the phone script* provided below

  • Send a Tweet (using this tool) or a Facebook Message to your members.

  • Email We’ve put together a portal you can use to email and tweet your Senators directly here using our email script. 

Please also consider contacting Senate leadership and Senate Finance Committee leadership as well. Those members are:

*What to say:

Easy-to-use scripts are below. You can use them as is, or can customize them to share your stories about the impact of COVID-19 in your local community. Also, please consider sharing the preliminary results of APSE's COVID Impact Survey with your Senators!

Easy Phone/Email Script:

Hello, this is [Name]. I’m a resident of [Town, State, Zip code].  

I am calling to ask [Senator’s Name] to make sure that the Senate’s COVID-19 relief bill includes dedicated funding for home and community-based services (HCBS) — including for community mental health services and HCBS waivers — to help the millions of people in this country with disabilities, who are among those most impacted by the pandemic. Dedicated HCBS funding is desperately needed to help people with disabilities and older adults remain safely in their homes rather than being forced in nursing homes and other congregate settings, where infections and deaths from COVID-19 are rampant.
 
The House included dedicated funding for HCBS in the HEROES Act (H.R. 6800), and the Senate must do the same in the HEALS Act. The need for HCBS funding is more urgent now than ever, with major outbreaks of COVID-19 in nursing homes and other congregate settings in the country. I ask you to convey the critical importance of dedicated HCBS funding to Senate leadership.
 
Thank you!

[IF EMAILING OR LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address and zip code to ensure your call or email is tallied]

Sample Tweet:
 
[Your Senator's Twitter handle] #WhatWeNeed is dedicated #HCBS funding in the next #COVID19 bill so people with disabilities can access the services they need to safely live and work in their communities.
APSE is the only national, non-profit membership organization dedicated to Employment First, a vision that all people with disabilities have a right to competitive employment in an inclusive workforce.