Call From the Governor's Office

Last Thursday I had the opportunity to go to Columbia and talk to Senator David Thomas about autism. Definitely preaching to the choir there, but it was a fantastic experience.

On the way out, I saw the hallway for Governor Sanford's office. I had an extra CD copy of Michael's movie, so I figured I'd drop it off. I assumed that would be the last of it, but at least I had done SOMETHING.

Well, I just received a call from Susan Duncan, the Governor's Health Care Policy Advisor. She had watched the movie, visited my website (which was printed on the CD), and read my blog. I hadn't left a phone number or my address, so she had to do at least a little bit of work to find me.

Of course I didn't hear anything like, "Wow, your movie has changed the Governor's mind on everything!" She still talked about how the Governor doesn't like to "mandate" coverage, and the PDD Waiver was supposed to be temporary.

But I also got to emphasize that right now our family has NOTHING. A forever wait-list and no coverage by the insurance mandate. His reasons don't help ME or MY SON.

I still don't agree with the Governor's decisions regarding autism. But I am at least glad that someone in the office took the time to watch the movie and listen to my concerns. Makes me feel like I'm doing SOMETHING to help Michael.