*Action Alert: Help Gulf War Vets* Update on Support in US House of Representative, Attention Turns to US Senators

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The List is in on who signed on to House side to support Gulf War illness Research for DOD CDMRP funding for Gulf War illness research-the letter goes to House Appropriations Committee………..
Current Signers:  Kucinich, Holt, Filner, Michaud, Henry Brown, Corrine Brown, Berkley, Doggett, Hall, Conyers, Jr., McDermott, Ross, Hastings, Baldwin, Dennis Moore, Gwen Moore, Stark, Kagen, Grijalva

We are tremendously grateful to the 19 Representatives that signed on.

But we are extremely disappointed that out of 435 Representatives ONLY 19 signed on to this letter to in fact tell the House Appropriations Committee( that is powerful) to support Gulf War Illness Research thru funding DOD CDMRP Gulf War Illness Research at 25 million for FY 2011.  Despite the list of veterans organizations that supported this effort, despite our veterans battling to contact their US Reps by phone during the week of HCR with 100,000 calls an hour to the hill 19 US Representative Signed on.

This is not the way that our Representatives should show support and appreciation to veterans and most certainly the ones that did not sign on don”t seem to care enough!  This is not an earmark that only affects their district or state.  It is a way to support finding treatment and answers through the best research possible for Gulf War Veterans and others who may be ill from environmental toxins, etc. 

The damage to the brain is a real physiological damage.  Many more researchers in the right fields are getting interested and involved and the submissions for research funding through the DOD CDMRP GWI panel has grown yearly.  We have battled each year since 05 for these funds starting with 5 million the first year.  Research is costly.  That first year we had 33 submissions that got to the Merit Review panel after having been through an Integrative Panel that made sure that the research proposals were appropriate for the guidleines.  Each year the numbers of submissions for research funding has grown by leaps and bounds.  So we have the interest now and we need the increased funding.  The amount being requested this year is still significantly less that the VA RAC GWI had requested.

The veterans with MS and the MS society have gone to the congress and senate and gotten overwhelming support on their efforts for funding MS research thru the DOD CDMRP.  MS is important but they have access to other agencies ie NIH and powerful supportive civilian organizations whereas Gulf War Illness Research for openly world-wide competive research for researchers worldwide is only at DOD CDMRP.

Next week is the Senators turn.  They have until Friday the 26th on the Senate side to sign on with Senator Sanders letter that will go to Senate Appropriations Committee.  I encourage all veterans to start emailing, faxing, calling your US Senators at their DC offices.  WE need 25 million for Gulf war illness research that is centered on finding treatment options for gulf war illness.

The DOD CDMRP is the only openly competive research process to every researcher in the US and overseas.  This is the way we will get the best of the best medical and scientific minds to help find treatment for gulf war illness that affects at least one in four of the Gulf War Veterans of 1990-91.  Which in itself is historical numbers of veterans ill after a war!
Get involved now!  Call, write, Email, Fax deadline on Senate is next Friday 26th.  Ask for the Senator’s staffer on veterans/defense issue.  Tell them to call or email you back re their decision on whether to sign on with Senator Sanders letter that supports 25 million for Gulf War Illness Research at DOD CDMRP for FY2011.  That letter then goes to the US Senate Appropriations Committee.

Please use every means possible asking friends, family members, all civilians to help.  Use facebook pages to call attention to this not only on your facebook pages but other group pages at Facebook.  Email all your contacts to help and do the same.  Twitter is active on gulf war veterans, use the full social network.  This is important let us all make this effort grow in support.

UPDATED EXTENSION OF TIME TO CONTACT US HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES UNTIL FRIDAY MARCH 19 MID DAY

This is an urgent call for support to help your Gulf War Veterans 1990-91, please pick up the phone and call your US Representative Office and your Senators offices in DC Right Now. We have until mid afternoon Friday (March 19) to make this happen. For 19 years we gulf war veterans have been fighting for effective treatment. The VA RAC GWI has in their report stated the need clearly. WE have VSOs working but the US Representives like to know their people in their districts want them to sign on too! Please make phone calls to the US House Representatives in DC and ask them to contact Representative Kucinich and Holt to show their support of this effort by signing on to the letter!

Update: WE now have the letter for DOD CDMRP funding for Gulf War Illness Research circulating in the Senate by Senator Sanders of Vermont. Call your US Senators now and ask them to support this effort by signing on to the letter circulated by Senator Sanders.
All you have to do is convince them that this is a worthy and will needed research to help find treatment modalities for the ill gulf war veterans. The letter on Senate side is asking for the same amount of research money. The only difference is the Senators must call Senator Sanders office to sign on.

WE will keep you updated as to which US Representatives and US Senators sign on to these two letters to show support for helping the Gulf War Veterans who are ill. This is disgusting that there is such a lack of care from US Representatives and Senators to show support for their veterans! To have ill gulf war veterans and their families calling their US Representative and Senators and yet we just have a handful signed on. Time for Action all veterans and all citizens.

DEADLINE: mid afternoon Friday March 19

FY10 Signers: Kucinich, Filner, Michaud, Henry Brown, Holt, Hall, Corrine Brown, Edwards, Baldwin, Ross, Conyers, Grijalva, Maloney, McDermott, Dennis Moore, Gwen Moore, Pascrell, Pingree, Stark, Sestak, Yarmuth

Current Signers: Kucinich, Holt, Berkley, Henry Brown, Hall, Corrine Brown, Conyers, Jr., McDermott, Ross

Dear Colleague:

We invite you to join us in supporting research into Gulf War Veterans Illnesses by signing a letter to the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee requesting $25 million for fiscal year 2011. This request has the endorsement of the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Paralyzed Veterans of America, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, the National Vietnam and Gulf War Vets Coalition, the Fleet Reserves Association, the Reserve Enlisted Association, Vietnam Veterans of America, Disabled American Veterans and the Enlisted Association of the National Guard of the United States.

Last month, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki indicated that the VA intends to revisit the rejected claims of Gulf War veterans who have attempted to access treatment for the illnesses linked to their service. But there is still no effective treatment for Gulf War Illnesses. The research program’s tremendous successes are creating growing excitement among scientists in the health research community because of the potential to not only help veterans, but so many others who suffer from similar illnesses. GWI researcher Richard Briggs said, “In the last two years we have learned more about Gulf War Illness than we did in the previous 15.”

Research has shown that Gulf War veterans suffer from ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease, at double the rate of their non-deployed peers. Additionally, the 2008 report from the Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans Illnesses (RAC) stated that “Gulf War illness is real, that it is the result of neurotoxic exposures during Gulf War deployment, and that few veterans have recovered or substantially improved with time.”

The 2008 report also recommended that Congress appropriate $40 million for the program, “an amount commensurate with the scope of the problem.” We propose to continue this important work with $25 million in FY11.

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