Nation Watch—Advocacy
You Can Make A Difference
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Problem: The general public doesn't even know there is an institutional bias in the Medicaid program. They believe nursing homes are appropriate for "some" people, and pay little or no attention to "long-term care" until they are faced with needing it for a family member, friend, etc.
Long-term services/care, home and community-based services, PAS, these are all part of our vocabulary, but they are rarely the subject of media coverage-unless some nursing home scandal erupts, or it gets mentioned in the debate in Congress over Medicare, etc.
Solution: We need to begin to use the media as a vehicle for shaping the public consciousness over the institutional bias.
On Sunday November 23, the New York Times Magazine will be publishing an article by Harriet McBride Johnson titled "The Disability Gulag", in which she discusses many issues we all know well: funding bias, state nurse practice acts, MiCASSA, Olmstead, Waivers, the ADA, etc. Let's use this as a tool for getting our local press to pay attention, and getting it on the national media radar screen.
What You Can Do
Write letters to NYT. You can be ready before the article is published and have it ready to fire off to letters@nytimes.com.
Identify local stories where institutional bias, or waiting lists, or funding cuts are keeping someone in a nursing home or forcing someone to go to a nursing home or other institution. Pitch the story to a reporter, using The Disability Gulag as your leverage. Talking points will be available from Marsha Katz, ADAPTMT@aol.com
Prepare/update your media list now. Contact local media outlets when the story hits the streets, and get them interested, hook them with the story and the local angle. Pitch your own local story, and how the Gulag article is really happening right in your hometown.
Hold a press briefing or press conference, calling for your state Congressional delegation to support passage of MiCASSA. ADAPT is demanding hearings by March 31st. Work with a MiCASSA supporter to get their staff support, commitment to speaking at press conference, etc. Get copies of the article for your press kits.
Request an editorial board visit, to educate them-use the NYTimes article to gain leverage.
Hold a reporter briefing/panel at a local organization like a CIL. Get the reporters to present on how their outlet (newspaper, tv station) works, but then also use the opportunity to educate them about the institutional bias. This is especially effective when tied into a training, or conference.
Work on getting an op-ed ready and placed during the week following the NY Times Gulag article. A template will be available from ADAPTMT@aol.com .
For More Information
Contact Jennifer Burnett, jburnett@dejazzd.com or
Janine Bertram-Kemp, janinebk@aol.com
From the Media Advocacy Project (MAP). ForwardSourceID:NT001226F6