[NFBSea] ATTN: Marci Carpenter

Fri Feb 18 01:50:53 UTC 2022

Hi Marci, this came to my attention through a Tacoma Human Rights Commission
contact. I'm directing it to you because blind people also have been
affected by these eugenics laws in the past.

Please review and advise our Washington chapters. 

I pasted the links in text if the embedded links don't work for writing to
our representatives.

Thanks,
Sushil Oswal

Hi we need your help to defeat ESHB1141 "Increase Death with Dignity Act"
this bill will negatively impact those individuals' w/disabilities and
people of color.  People of color already face lethal disparities in
healthcare. Allowing healthcare providers, who are not "medical doctors"
prescribe lethal drugs to patients they deem "eligible "only increase
dangers, mistakes, coercion, and abuse and is not autonomy, for all. People
with disabilities have complicated medical needs and know how easy it is to
end up with a medical person who does not understand how to help them. It is
already possible under the assisted suicide law for a doctor of any
specialty to write a script for lethal medication. This expansion would now
allow potentially less qualified medical professionals in an unrelated
specialty to sign off on getting drugs. We know that the top five reasons
people request assisted suicide have to do with fear of disability. The
proposed expansions will make it more likely that people with disabilities
die by assisted suicide without getting the care they truly need. Please
protect my community from harm. 

I support "Disability Rights Washington" (DRW) in opposing ESHB1141
"Increase Death with Dignity Act". Below are some actions recommended by DRW
you can take to help defeat this bill along with information explaining this
bill negative impact. SEE BELOW:

 In case you haven't seen, the bill is scheduled for a hearing TOMORROW at
8am. We need your help. Please sign in to testify
<https://app.leg.wa.gov/csi/Testifier/Add?chamber=Senate&mId=29811&aId=14705
9&caId=19698&tId=2&link_id=2&can_id=a8454878563831fd029141acf30c0a13&source=
email-action-alert-oppose-eshb-1141-executive-committee-vote-4&email_referre
r=email_1445568&email_subject=action-alert-testify-con-on-eshb-1141> 
https://app.leg.wa.gov/csi/Testifier/Add?chamber=Senate&mId=29811&aId=147059
&caId=19698&tId=2&link_id=2&can_id=a8454878563831fd029141acf30c0a13&source=e
mail-action-alert-oppose-eshb-1141-executive-committee-vote-4&email_referrer
=email_1445568&email_subject=action-alert-testify-con-on-eshb-1141
 or at the very least note your position
<https://app.leg.wa.gov/csi/Testifier/Add?chamber=Senate&mId=29811&aId=14705
9&caId=19698&tId=3&link_id=3&can_id=a8454878563831fd029141acf30c0a13&source=
email-action-alert-oppose-eshb-1141-executive-committee-vote-4&email_referre
r=email_1445568&email_subject=action-alert-testify-con-on-eshb-1141>  
https://app.leg.wa.gov/csi/Testifier/Add?chamber=Senate&mId=29811&aId=147059
&caId=19698&tId=3&link_id=3&can_id=a8454878563831fd029141acf30c0a13&source=e
mail-action-alert-oppose-eshb-1141-executive-committee-vote-4&email_referrer
=email_1445568&email_subject=action-alert-testify-con-on-eshb-1141
for the record. Please also share with your networks. Right now, there are
316 people signed in PRO and we are severely outnumbered.

ACTION ALERT: Testify 'CON' on ESHB 1141
"Increasing access to the death with dignity act."

ESHB 1141 significantly dilutes what little protections we have in the
current Death with Dignity statute. ESHB 1141 will be heard in the Senate
Health & Long Term Care Committee on Friday, 2/18 at 8:00 AM. Please sign up
to testify against this bill - and ask others to do the same!

People with disabilities are sometimes pressured into assisted suicide, or
not offered support and treatment that come with other options. The current
protections in law should be maintained and strengthened to ensure that
people understand and have access to all options other than assisted
suicide. This bill removes three major protections in place including:

1. Greatly expands list of medical providers who can oversee assisted
suicide. Under Death with Dignity Act, only medical doctors can oversee
assisted suicide. This bill expands those who can oversee assist to include
registered nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and osteopathic
physician assistants. The bill does not require additional specialized
training for these medical providers in treating assisted suicide patients.

2. Reduces waiting time for end-of-life medication. There are waiting
periods in current law at critical points, to make sure the patient is
certain in their decision. The bill reduces the 15-day waiting period
between oral requests for the medication to 72 hours; and that can be
reduced further if the medical provider decides the person is close to
death. Currently there is a 48 hour waiting period where a patient makes a
written request. The bill eliminates this waiting period.

3. Allows medication to be sent to patients by mail (or courier). Under
current law, a medical doctor delivers the medication. The bill changes
this, allowing the mailing of the end-of-life medication. The recipient must
sign a receipt for the lethal medication.

Lastly, we do not have clear information on how this law is currently
working. Two years ago a study was proposed to learn more but was vetoed by
the Governor due to budget concerns. Please consider signing on to our
letter, as an individual or an organization.

From: NFBSea [mailto:nfbsea-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Marci Carpenter
via NFBSea
Sent: Wednesday, February 16, 2022 5:36 PM
To: Clark County Chapter, NFB of Washington List <cccnfbw at nfbnet.org>;
nfbwatlk at nfbnet.org; nfbsea at nfbnet.org
Cc: Marci Carpenter <mjc59 at comcast.net>
Subject: [NFBSea] Contact legislators about supporting Accessible
Prescription Label bill, Committee hearing this Friday

Greetings,

HB 1852 is a bill in the Washington state legislature which contains
language requiring that prescription container labels be provided in
accessible formats for blind, low vision and print disabled people. It
passed the House last week. The Senate companion bill, SB 5840 has a hearing
this Friday morning at 8 AM in the Senate Health and Long Term Care
Committee. We need as many members as possible to register in support of the
bill. In the Committee information the bill is listed as ESHB 1852.

The main part of the bill is about providing prescription labels in other
languages for non-English speaking people. There is now an amendment which
says:
By July 1, 2024, the Commission shall adopt rules establishing other
accessibility requirements for individuals who are blind, low vision or
otherwise print disabled for prescription drug labels and prescription
information
The commission the bill refers to is the Washington state Pharmacy Quality
Assurance Commission.

You can submit comments on the bill or provide written testimony to the
Committee. To comment on the bill go to
https://app.leg.wa.gov/pbc/bill/5840.  Here you can comment on the bill and
have that comment sent to your legislators. First you must enter your
address (no abbreviations and no  apartment numbers). Your legislative
district will be verified and you can then register your support of the bill
and send comments. The comment section has a 1,000 word limit.

To submit written testimony which is sent to committee members and committee
staff go to https://app.leg.wa.gov/csi/Testifier/Add?chamber=Senate
<https://app.leg.wa.gov/csi/Testifier/Add?chamber=Senate&mId=29811&aId=14643
1&caId=19533&tId=4> &mId=29811&aId=146431&caId=19533&tId=4. Written
testimony can be submitted before the hearing or within 24 hours after the
hearing.

If you want to read the entire Engrossed Substitue bill you can find it at
this link;
https://lawfilesext.leg.wa.gov/biennium/2021-22/Pdf/Bills/House%20Bills/1852
-S.E.pdf?q=20220216172308.

Tips for comments and written testimony
Say the you support ESHB 1852 because..
We need prescription label information in a format that we can read
independently.
If you have a personal story (or know a blind person who does) about taking
the wrong prescription because there was not an accessible label, tell that
story briefly.

As you can tell from the amendment language above there are no details about
providing labels in audio, braille or large print. The details on this and
other issues will be worked out in the rule making process. We will
definitely make our voices heard in that process. We are focusing now on
getting this bill passed by the Senate Health and Long Term care Committee
and then by the entire Senate. The bill, with the amendment on accessible
labels, has already passed the state House.

Again, the committee hearing is this Friday, February 18, at 9 AM. 

Thank you for helping to pass this important legislation.

Marci Carpenter, President
National Federation of the Blind of Washington
206-604-5507
mjc559 at comcast.net <mailto:mjc559 at comcast.net> 

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