Maryland Autoimmune Disease Bill Signed Into Law

Back, from left: Adrienne Oleck, Scleroderma Foundation Director of Legislative Affairs; Tom Liberatore, National MS Society – Maryland Chapter; Senator Gwendolyn Britt, (D - MD), District 47; Joan Manny, Sjögren's Syndrome Foundation; Staff of Department of Legislative Affairs. Front, from left: Lt. Governor, Michael S. Steele; President of the Senate, The Honorable Thomas V. Mike Miller, Jr.; Governor of Maryland, Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.; Speaker of the House, Michael Erin Busch; and Governor's senior staff.

Governor Robert Ehrlich Jr. of Maryland signed the first-ever state autoimmune disease legislation in the country on May 10 in Annapolis, the capital of Maryland. The Sjögren's Syndrome Foundation, along with the Scleroderma Foundation and the National MS Society - Maryland Chapter, spearheaded the effort to introduce the legislation that passed both the Maryland House and Senate unanimously.

Maryland Legislation created a one-year Task Force with the power to study the impact of autoimmune diseases in Maryland. The Task Force is the first of its kind in the country and is expected to serve as a model in other states.

An outpouring of grassroots support backed the legislation. Letters and emails from the Autoimmune Disease Coalition of Maryland, a group of 15 patient advocacy organizations and people affected by autoimmune diseases, supplemented the Senate testimony given by people affected by autoimmune disease. One of those testifying was Lenny Moore, former Baltimore Colts Hall of Famer (1975). The Coalition and the public successfully argued that the Task Force is needed because it would likely reveal cost-saving opportunities and improve the health of Maryland citizens.

The Autoimmune Task Force will investigate ways to improve Maryland health services and systems surrounding autoimmune disease. The Task Force will specifically examine issues such as services available, the special needs of women and minorities with autoimmune diseases, ways the state can facilitate increased public awareness of autoimmune disease, and ways to accelerate early diagnosis. The Task Force will work for one year before issuing a report. Various appointed members will include representatives from health care, patient advocacy organizations, people with autoimmune disease, and caretakers.

Members of the Autoimmune Disease Coalition of Maryland
American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association	National Alopecia Areata Foundation
American Diabetes Association	National Eczema Society
American Pain Foundation	National Multiple Sclerosis Society - Maryland Chapter
Arthritis Foundation	Platelet Disorder Support Association
Friends of the NIDCR	Scleroderma Foundation
Lupus Mid-Atlantic	Sjögren's Syndrome Foundation
Lupus of Greater DC	Wegener’s Granulomatosis Association

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