|
Two hundred advocates joined Lance Armstrong in the halls of Congress |
|
|
|
Thursday, 24 May 2007 |
Two hundred advocates joined Lance Armstrong in the halls of Congress announcing The Cancer Screening, Treatment and Survivorship Act of 2007. The act, which assures screenings are made available and works toward developing screening techniques for more types of cancer, was the kick-off event for LIVESTRONG Day, May 16, 2007 in Washington, D.C.
Three Skinny Tire Festival cyclists, Jeffery DalPoggetto from California, Robert "Bob" Sega from Nevada, and Dave Mitchell from Pennsylvania were chosen as delegates from their respective states. They joined Chris Brewer from LAF along with other advocates as part of the LIVESTRONG Army to help introduce the Survivorship Act of 2007 to Congress. "The day was filled with inspiration", reported Bob, "the LIVESTRONG Day, like the Challenge Rides and The Skinny Tire Festival, comes mostly from the positive attitudes of the participants. Many have really been to hell and only partway back but you never hear a 'why me' complaint. The main thought becomes, what can I do so somebody else doesn't have to go through this same thing". DalPoggetto echoed, "As a cancer survivor we know what the needs are, and we are as committed and passionate as Lance is for the changes that are needed".
200,000 people die annually due to limited access to known treatments or failure to diagnose situations early enough.
"I'm very excited about the work Lance and the LAF are doing", said Mitchell, "to force our elected officials to take a position on screening and treatment for those who can't afford it. Our biggest opportunity is to make sure our own state has a cancer treatment plan in place," said Mitchell.
"Lance encouraged us to lead the charge", said Bob. "To get the act introduced, passed, and funded takes pressure to our representatives", declares Sega. Bob, Dave, and Jeff encourage us to sign up for the LIVESTRONG Army
and to also write an independent letter to our representatives encouraging co-sponsorship and passing of the bill.
Did you participate in a LIVESTRONG Day 2007 event in your community? We'd like to hear about it. Email :
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
.
Read more about LAF's national advocacy initiatives at http://www.livestrong.org/site/c.khLXK1PxHmF/b.2704021/k.654A/At_the_National_Level.htm.
Only registered users can write comments.
Please login or register. Powered by AkoComment 2.0.3! |
Skinny Blogs