Press Release: Disability Opposition to Assisted Suicide Bills Helped Secure Third Defeat In New England States This Session

March 31, 2014assisted suicide, Our News & Commentary Blog, press releaseassisted suicide, press releaseDiane Coleman

…ngside quotes from Not Dead Yet’s Coleman and Kelly, Marilyn Golden of the California-based Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund was quoted regarding the Connecticut bill, saying “This does not promote patient choice. It invites coercion.” As Second Thoughts Connecticut leader Cathy Ludlum told the Yale Daily News, the bill “would basically redefine what suicide is. It would mean some people are going to get suicide prevention, and other p…

Dialogue Begins About Feeding Tubes and Breathing Devices With Respecting Choices Program

April 1, 2014Our News & Commentary BlogDiane Coleman

Last December, a significant number of national and local disability rights organizations as well as individuals with disabilities and supporters signed onto a letter addressed to the Respecting Choices advance care planning program at Gundersen Health Systems in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. The letter criticized two documents for inaccuracy and bias in their discussions of feeding tubes, bipaps and ventilators. The documents were first discovered by Sec…

ADAPT Wins Meeting with Leadership Conference on Civil Rights to Address Disconnect Between Disability Rights and Broader Civil Rights Movement

May 6, 2014ADAPT, Our News & Commentary BlogADAPTDiane Coleman

…Leadership Conference work with us to initiate a process to bring ADAPT’s leaders together with other civil rights organizations to find a way to address this critical problem. This was the third of four days of directed action by ADAPT in Washington DC. ***30***…

Would You Rather Die Than Go To A Nursing Facility? Time For the Community Integration Act!

July 1, 2014ADAPT, Community Integration Act, long term care, nursing homes, Our News & Commentary BlogADAPT, Community Integration ActDiane Coleman

…a new enforcement mechanism where the Secretary of Health and Human Services can reduce the federal Medicaid match for a state that fails to comply with the law. The legislation adds a new requirement that states needs to report on their progress in providing community integration. The legislation ends institutional bias by including home and community based services as a mandatory service for all states. And finally, it includes a clause that pr…

NDY Articles and Letters Published in NJ Press Kick Butt

July 3, 2014assisted suicide, john kelly, new jersey, op-ed, Our News & Commentary Blogassisted suicide, Diane Coleman, John Kelly, New JerseyDiane Coleman

…progressive legislators in New Jersey, so on June 25th John posted what is called a “diary” in bluejersey.com called “Assisted Suicide Is Not Progressive”. John made several key points, such as: Supporters of A2270 say that it is all about “autonomy,” but in reality the bill would limit choice, because it incentivizes insurers to restrict, or even deny, coverage. In today’s cost-cutting environment, where health-care options are limited, many peop…