My Medicaid Matters Rally in Washington DC September 21 2011 featuring Senator Dennis Kucinich, SEIU sister home care worker from Chicago Illinois, Gilda Brown, and sister Julia from Virginia

Greetings from Sacramento!

Greetings from the Econo-lodge on 16th Street in Sacramento!

Today members of Action for IHSS came to Sacramento and spoke to legislative aids about preventing IHSS budget cuts. The politicos said your calls and emails are definitely making a difference. Over the next 24 hours, please make your phone calls and emails to the offices of:
Noreen Evans, (Dem) Chair, (916) 319-2007
Assemblymember Jim Nielson (Rep)(916) 319-2002
Assemblymember Roger Niello (Rep) (916) 319-2005
The last two are republicans who might be our swing votes.

We also sat in the Budget Conference Committee meeting and listened to legislators go through the agenda, voting item by item in hyperspeed. snip snip snip. There's no more discussion.

We also participated in the IHSS coalition conference call and suggested some guerilla theatre at the rally in San Francisco, Tuesday, June 23rd and possibly on Monday 6/22 in Sacramento. If you want to do do some political street theatre, contact us.

ACT4IHSS wants to hear from you. If you have any questions or comments or would like to get involved, please contact Hannah at hannahjo@LMi.net or Nick at daretodream94704@yahoo.com.

If you received this on a different list or individually, to subscribe, email ACT4IHSS-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.

In Solidarity,
Nick Feldman, Joy Taylor, and Hannah Karpilow

PS, If you missed the web town hall meeting that streamed tonight, you can see it in a couple of days on the senate website.

The vote on IHSS budget is in the Conference Committee tomorrow, Monday June 15. Several members of Action 4 IHSS will be there with signs. A bus of SEIU members is also scheduled to be there. We don't know if and what anything is happening as far as statewide movement for tomorrow, but we do know of things planned for the near future.

Save the dates: Wednesday June 17 10am in Oakland
Tuesday June 23 in San Francisco and Sacramento (in connection with the anniversary of the Olmstead Decision, will include Civil Disobedience)

Still trying to find out more about Action in Sac on Thursday June 18 "Day of Reckoning" - if anyone has information about this please tell us!!

Current proposal on the table includes reducing wages and benefits and eliminating up to 90% of the IHSS program based on new eligibility criteria.

COMMUNITY INTEGRATION not INSTITUTIONAL TERMINATION!

RALLY REPORT

we got a little bit of press at the kick-off rally to save IHSS.
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2009/03/27/18583787.php

By the way, I realize this is a detour from the original mission of Action for IHSS, however in my opinion, we need to focus on saving our paychecks and benefits and put the systemic change on the side burner. Not that we're taking a break; I think that while we have the attention of the entities concerned (IHSS, PA, SEIU) we have to maintain that conversation, but we also need to join with SEIU to fight these cuts. There will be another rally in front of Oakland City Hall on Thursdsay April 2 at noon. Please try to attend. When everyone there wears purple (SEIU color), some people will dismiss it, but if people in wheelchairs, and other folks attend then it appears (rightfully) to be a broader issue than labor.

WELCOME

ACTION for IHSS is a group of In-Home Supportive Services clients (aka consumers, recipients) and attendants (aka home-care workers, providers, aides, personal assistants) and advocates who are working to change the way the program is administered, specifically in Alameda County. Created in October 2008, to date we have met with the Public Authority Advisory Board Program Services Committee, the Board of Supervisors Social Services Subcommittee, and a group of staffmembers and directors of the Public Authority and the County IHSS program. Our next step is to meet with Union officials to voice our concerns and to work with the other agencies on tools for determining how widespread the problems we encounter are.

We encourage anyone who has any connection or concern about IHSS to join our efforts to improve the system. Share your horror stories of delays in pay, interruptions in benefits, or other problems. Send email to
act4ihss-owner@yahoogroups.com. Also,

Please join our email group by sending an email to:

act4ihss-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

We are participating in our first public action tomorrow, Friday March 27 at 11:45 in front of the State Building at 1515 Clay Street in Oakland. Please join us!!