June 12, 2006

Dear Member of Congress,

VOR members very much appreciate your past attention to the needs of our family members with mental retardation. The time you dedicate to listening to our concerns, gives our family members with severe and profound mental retardation a voice in the legislative process. 

This year, our primary concern is the Fiscal Year 2007 Federal Budget.  Your vote is vital to setting our nation’s spending priorities on a path toward improving, not harming, the lives of Americans with mental retardation who rely on Medicaid programs for health and long term care.  People with mental retardation who receive Medicaid-funded supports are most vulnerable to seeing their life-line services eliminated in the budget process, including residential, health care, Occupational Therapy (OT)/Physical Therapy (PT), transportation and other discretionary Medicaid programs.

During visits, VOR members will urge you to adopt a budget with appropriate funding levels to increase – not cut – these vital, lifesaving programs and services. We strongly support the proposal by numerous Members of Congress to increase domestic discretionary appropriations by 2 percent.

Americans with mental retardation cannot endure the hardships that deeper cuts in their programs and services will create. We plead for the adoption of a FY 2007 Federal Budget that supports our family members with mental retardation.

Remember that Americans who can’t help themselves because of no fault of their own are dependent upon the good will of the Congress. Thank you for your compassionate support.

Sincerely,

Mary E. McTernan, Ph.D.

President

P.S. Please consider VOR a resource anytime.

VOR * 836 S. Arlington Heights Rd., #351 * Elk Grove Village, Illinois * 60007

877-399-4VOR ph. * 847-253-0675 fax * tamie327@hotmail.com