Congressional Funding Initiative: Email Your Senators

Dear Support Group Member (plus family or friends),

We are asking you to take a few minutes before November 24, to
help get funding for PN research from Congress. Sorry for the quick
turnaround, but we know how important this issue is for our members.
As you probably know, Congress, like the country, does not know
much about PN. For almost two years now, the Foundation for
Peripheral Neuropathy (FPN) has been working to get Congress to
acknowledge that PN is a disease worthy of research. This week we
got news that the current phase of their work is nearing success. We
are not quite there yet. The Foundation is asking for our assistance to
get it over the finish line. They think November 24 (2 days before
Thanksgiving) is an important deadline.

What can you do?
Take the time to contact your Senators regarding the final approval of
the FY21 Defense Appropriations Act. Ask them to ensure that the
final version includes the “peripheral neuropathy” designation in the
PRMRP, a highly-significant DOD medical research program.

Here’s how you (and any friend or family member) can do this:
FIRST: Forward this information to family and friends. The more
the better.

NEXT: Contact your two Senators

◦ If you are a Maryland resident, click on each of the
following two links www.cardin.senate.gov/contact/ and
www.vanhollen.senate.gov/contact/email
◦ If you are a Virginia resident, use each of these links
www.kaine.senate.gov/contact and
www.warner.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=Contact
◦ If you are a DC resident, become an FPN member at
https://www.foundationforpn.org/member-registration/
◦ If you are a resident of another state, find the contact for
your Senator here. For each Senator, click on the link for
that Senator’s contact page/form.
THIRD, for each Senator, fill out the form with your name,
address, and message.
◦ Where the form asks for your message, copy and paste the
standard message below (filling in the Senator’s name and
yours too)
◦ OR, if you prefer, personalize your message with your own
words. You can, for instance, describe PN’s impact on your
life or the people who depend on you. If you do that please
use these words at the top: “On behalf of the more than 30
million Americans coping with peripheral neuropathy, I urge
you to approve the Defense Appropriations Act as written.
In this final version peripheral neuropathy is included as an
eligible condition for research funding from the PRMRP.”
Those words will help Senate staff “keep count” and
numbers matter!
◦ DO NOT bother writing a paper letter (for security reasons,
they never arrive.)
FOURTH, let us know what you did. That will help the lobbyist
reinforce what you sent. There are options for doing this:
a) Either use this link: Click to Tell Us If this link works (depends on
your email configuration) it will open up a draft email for you to send to
us. Fill in your name, city and state.
b) OR Send us an email. You can use our website’s contact form
(https://pnsnetwork.org/contact-pn/) to do this or send us a regular email to dcpn.group@gmail.com. Use subject: “I contacted my senators” and
give your name, city and state.

Find out more.
Here is background information about this important
initiative.

Message to your Senators (copy and paste in the body of
your email):

Dear Senator,
Recently, the Senate Committee on Appropriations voted to
include “peripheral neuropathy” among the disorders and
conditions eligible for research funding under the Peer-Reviewed
Medical Research Program (PRMRP). Peripheral Neuropathy is
now a specified disease in the Senate’s FY21 Defense
Appropriations Act bill that was released on November 10, 2020.
I understand that in the coming weeks, the Senate will approve
the final version of this bill. On behalf of the more than 30 million
Americans coping with peripheral neuropathy, I urge you to
approve the fiscal year 2021 Defense Appropriations Act as
written. In this final version peripheral neuropathy is included as
an eligible condition for research funding from the PRMRP.
Research funding for peripheral neuropathy is extremely
important to the veterans, military families and civilians dealing
with this debilitating condition. For this reason, the Vietnam
Veterans of America and the Veterans for Common Sense have
endorsed this request.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. We hope we can
count on you to work for the final enactment of this important
legislative initiative.

Sincerely,
(include your name and postal address)