Save the Date – Hemophilia Day at the State Capitol will be February 3, 2011

Horizons in Hemophilia, December 2010 

By Jeff Cornett RN, MSN, Director of Training, Research, & Advocacy

On Thursday, February 3, Hemophilia of Georgia will host Hemophilia Day at the Georgia Capitol in Atlanta.  Hemophilia Day is an opportunity for families with bleeding disorders in Georgia to meet with senators and representatives in the General Assembly.  In 2009, over 100 people participated in Hemophilia Day.  The personal contact they had that day with the legislature was key to getting funding restored for medication for people with bleeding disorders who lack health insurance.

Funding for factor for the uninsured will be a key issue for this Hemophilia Day also.  The Georgia Department of Community Health has recommended that the money for this program be cut in half for the current fiscal year and funding ended in the state budget that begins July 1.  Without this funding, people with bleeding disorders will not have quick access to the medication they need to stop bleeding.

As in 2009, Hemophilia Day will begin with a breakfast at the James H. "Sloppy" Floyd State Building across from the Capitol.  Afterwards, the group will go to the Capitol to speak to their elected representatives.  People who live too far away from Atlanta to attend Hemophilia Day in person can call their representatives and senators that morning.

Members of Georgia’s bleeding disorders community should watch their mailboxes for registration information for Hemophilia Day.  This is an “all ages” activity – some of our most effective voices in 2009 were children!