Call to Action- SCI Trust Fund

The Massachusetts Spinal Cord Injury Trust Fund was established in 2004 for the purpose of funding medical cure research for spinal cord injuries.  It is financed by money paid to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts by each person who seeks to reinstate their license to operate a motor vehicle after their license has been suspended.

Every year, approximately 400 people in Massachusetts sustain a Spinal Cord Injury (SCI).  SCI research, supported by the SCI Trust Fund, has the opportunity to employ the country’s top scientists, demonstrate the state’s leadership in the medical research field, and save health care dollars for the tax payers of Massachusetts.  We have a high concentration of hospitals, scientists, and patients in the Boston area, and yet funding for the SCI Trust Fund has decreased yearly from over $100,000 in 2010 to under $30,000 in 2014.  We need to act now so we do not lose our advantage to become leaders in this area on the national stage.

Please voice your support for the Spinal Cord Injury Trust Fund Bill!  If passed, this bill will restore the funding lost to the SCI Trust Fund since 2010 back to over $100,000.  We are at a critical juncture as the bill is currently stalled.  It will only move forward if local Representatives and local Senators hear from people who support SCI research, including consumers, researchers, care providers, family members, friends, and caregivers.  Elected officials rely on their constituents to let them know how important this bill is to the SCI community and the Commonwealth.  

Please take action now – your voice can truly make a difference!

How to get involved:

Contact your local Representative and local Senator (at https://malegislature.gov/People/FindMyLegislator) by:

1.   Making a phonecall

Try to speak with your Representative or Senator directly to share why the SCI Trust Fund bill is important to you.

If an aide or secretary answers the phone, tell him/her you would like to speak with your Representative or Senator directly and that it will only take 5 minutes.

Here are some talking points to emphasize:

  • The SCI Trust Fund has decreased yearly from over $100,000 in 2010 to under $30,000 in 2014
  • Similar legislation in New York (The Paul Richter Bill) generates seven million dollars a year and California has voted 3 billion dollars over 10 years
  • The Boston area has a distinct advantage and opportunity to become a leader in SCI research on a national stage which should not be lost due to lack of funding
  • Funding for this research creates jobs in MA for researchers and their teams and will reduce the amount of health care dollars spent by MA residents
  • Getting this bill passed will restore the funding lost to the Fund since 2010 to back to over $100,000

2.   Writing a letter

Here is a template of a letter or e-mail that you can send to your local Representative or local Senator:

To:  The Honorable (First name) (Last name)
(Room Number), State Capitol
(City), MA  (Zip Code)

CC:  Marc Pacheco, Senator
State House #312B
Boston, MA 02133
617-722-1551
Email: Kyle.Murray@MAsenate.gov

RE: Spinal Cord Injury Trust Fund Bill (SD-234)

Dear (Representative/Senator) (Last name):

My name is (your first and last name) and I am (state your relation to this cause) who resides in your district.

I would like to bring your attention to the Spinal Cord Injury Trust Fund, which – due to a technical error in a 2010 update by the DMV – went from receiving over $100,000 per year to fund research for a medical cure for Spinal Cord Injuries (SCI) to under $30,000 in funding in 2014.  This error can be corrected with your support.  Similar legislation in New York (The Paul Richter Bill) generates seven million dollars a year and California has voted 3 billion dollars over 10 years.

SCI research in Massachusetts employs the country’s top scientists, demonstrates the state’s leadership in the medical research field, and could greatly reduce the amount of health care dollars spent by Massachusetts residents. Boston has a unique opportunity that is being squandered. We have a high concentration of hospitals, scientists, and patients in the Boston area and we should not lose our advantage and opportunity to become a leader in this area on the National stage by allowing funding for this research to disappear.

This is win-win legislation- no new taxes, non-controversial, bi-partisan, and corrects the Scrivener’s error (an oversight) in the 2010 DMV legislation that cut funding to one third- to both the SCI Trust Fund and the General Fund.  

The Spinal Cord Injury Trust Fund Bill will be sent to Committee later this session.  Your help in its passage is appreciated.

If you agree to co-sponsor the Bill, SD-234, please call Kyle Murray, Legislative Director and General Counsel, at Senator Marc Pacheco’s office at 617-722-1551 to be added to the list officially.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

(SIGN YOUR NAME)
(Print your name)
(Street Address)
(City), MA  (Zip Code)

3.  Following-up

If you have not received a response from your elected official within a week, call his/her office or send a follow-up e-mail.  For more information, contact:

Eric J. Ruby, M.D.
Massachusetts Walks Again
508-823-4316

Thank you!

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