Tony Coelho Web Archives: Print Media Articles
Susan Mattos: Welcome to the Moon – a dream
come true - - Rarely in life can many people say that they have
indeed lived their dreams – not so with our very own West Side thespian –
Colton Pometta. As many of you may know – if not, you will now – began his
acting career right here in Newman with parts in the Newman Performing Arts
productions such as Oliver, Sweeney Todd, Music Man and Honk, just to name a
few. In addition, Colton decided that a portion of the proceeds from this
and every other Laughing Giraffe production, would be donated to The
National Epilepsy Foundation. With that, he caught the eye of the
foundation’s chairman – who I can proudly say, is none other than my own
brother, Tony Coelho. My brother was diagnosed with epilepsy at about the
same age as Colton and experienced many of the same symptoms as Colton and
so he has been a great source of support and encouragement for Colton. The
two share a great bond and thus also serve as great ambassadors for the fact
that you can indeed go on to do great things and epilepsy does not stop you!
Coelho: Public
Needs Voice in Health Care Decisions
- - By Tony Coelho - - As the presidential election heats up and the
Supreme Court prepares to hear arguments on the 2010 health care overhaul,
it’s clear that the issue will remain a major national priority this year.
Comparative effectiveness research, the idea of doing research to find out
what works for whom in health care, has been a prominent, and at times
contentious, issue in health care reform. Prominent because CER can serve a
very important purpose in advancing high-quality care. Contentious because
some propose that CER be used by the government to decide what medical care
should and shouldn’t be available to patients.
<more> March 7, 2012 Roll Call
Health-care debate launches UC spring series
- - The University of Charleston will launch its spring series of
lectures and debates Tuesday with a discussion about the future of health
care, especially the ethics of health care. The panel -- "Who Decides
Patient Treatment?" -- will feature Tommy Thompson and Tony Coehlo. It will
be between 6:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. in Geary Auditorium at Riggleman Hall on the
university's campus. Thompson is a former Wisconsin governor and U.S.
Secretary of Health and Human Services. Tony Coelho is a former congressman
from California who sponsored the Americans with Disabilities Act.
<more>
Jan. 31, 2012
Charleston Gazette Mail
McCain changes tune on support for Grand
Canyon air tours- - The 95-year-old mandate of the Park Service is
to protect the nation’s most precious natural resources, not commercial
activities, environmentalists complain. Similarly, when McCain co-sponsored
the 1987 law in the Senate and emphasized that he welcomed the economic
benefits of air tourism, he added, “When it comes to a choice between the
interests of our park system and those who profit from it, without a doubt
the interests of the land must come first.” Protecting air tour companies
was not a priority at that time, according to former Rep. Tony Coelho,
D-Calif., the House sponsor of the Grand Canyon bill, which also restricted
flights at Yosemite National Park and Haleakala in Hawaii. “They were
violating the air space of the parks for commercial gain,” Coelho said.
“Basically everyone agreed they were violating the intent of the original
designation of the parks.”
<more> Dec. 26, 2011 Iwatchnews.org.
Politicians to discuss health-care changes at UC forum- - The University
of Charleston will host a panel discussion about the future of health care
on Jan. 31 at 6:30 p.m. Tommy Thompson, former U.S. Secretary of Health and
Human Services and former governor of Wisconsin, and Tony Coelho, former
U.S. congressman from California and sponsor of the Americans with
Disabilities Act, will discuss ethical questions arising from the proposed
changes to healthcare law and the extent to which the public, the government
or insurers should pay for treatment for individuals who cannot afford
insurance.
<more> Dec. 16, 2011 Charleston Gazette
US Department
of Labor and congressional, community leaders reflect on Office of
Disability Employment Policy's 10-year anniversary
- - Secretary of Labor Hilda L.
Solis and Deputy Secretary of Labor Seth D. Harris today commemorated the
Office of Disability Employment Policy's 10th anniversary by celebrating the
positive impact of its policies and program initiatives with major leaders
in the community. Featured speakers included Sen. Tom Harkin (Iowa); Rep.
Steny Hoyer (Maryland); Kareem Dale, special assistant to the president for
disability policy; Kathleen Martinez, assistant secretary of labor for ODEP
and past assistant secretaries for the office. Also participating were two
of the visionaries behind ODEP's creation - Tony Coelho, chairman of the
President's Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities from 1994 to
2001, and Becky Ogle, executive director of the Presidential Task Force on
the Employment of Adults with Disabilities from 1998 to 2001.
<more> Dec. 16, 2011 Dept. of Labor Press Release
Murray-Calloway Hospital Celebrates National
Epilepsy Month - - Dr. Jimmy Couch, Neurologist/Epileptologist, and
the staff of the West Kentucky Epilepsy Center at Murray-Calloway County
Hospital encourage residents to “Get Seizure Smart” during National Epilepsy
Awareness Month. "National Epilepsy Awareness Month is an opportunity to
rally the community to raise awareness of epilepsy and find a cure," says
Tony Coelho, interim chief executive officer of the Epilepsy Foundation.
"These organizations understand the importance of this commitment and this
campaign."
<more> Nov. 26, 2011 SurfKy.com
Hit a Home Run for Epilepsy at the
Gingerbread City Gala- -
As National Epilepsy Awareness Month draws to an end, the Epilepsy
Foundation of San Diego County is gearing up to host a gala to benefit the
over 50,000 people affected by the chronic neurological disorder in San
Diego alone. Nationwide, approximately 3 million people are affected by
seizures, more than cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, and Parkinson’s
disease combined. On Thursday, December 1, the Foundation invites you to
“hit a home run for epilepsy” at their Gingerbread City gala in honor of
Jeff Moorad, Vice Chairman and CEO of the San Diego Padres and an advocate
for epilepsy awareness. Gala Chair Tony Coelho, a former United States
congressman from California who is living with epilepsy, authored the
Americans with Disabilities Act, widely recognized as the most important
piece of civil rights legislation in the last 40 years.
<more> Nov. 24, 2011 San Diego Reader.com
November is National Epilepsy Month
- - November is Epilepsy Awareness Month. Epilepsy can be caused by any
number of conditions that injure or affect the function of the brain. A
major cause is head injuries, whether due to trauma or an infection such as
meningitis. Former Congressman Tony Coelho, author of the Americans
Disabilities Act who has had seizures for a long time, has concerns about
the high number of soldiers returning from Iraq with traumatic brain
injuries. The risk of epilepsy among this group of soldiers is very high.
Studies have shown that 20 percent to 25 percent of individuals with “closed
head” injuries will develop what is termed post traumatic epilepsy.
<more> Nov. 22, 2011 Salisbury Post
Epilepsy Foundation 30th anniversary awards
dinner - - The Epilepsy Foundation of Northeastern, New York, will
celebrate 30 years of service at its annual awards dinner scheduled for Nov.
18, at 5:30 p.m. at the Wolferts Roost Country Club in Menands. The awards
dinner is held in November during epilepsy awareness month. This year’s
event, billed as the Epilepsy Foundation’s 30th Anniversary Awards Dinner,
will recognize Molly Kraus, the foundation’s “2010 winning kid.” Two guest
speakers, Tony Coelho and Dr. Brien Smith, will also be featured at the
dinner. “Tony is the CEO of the Epilepsy Foundation National Office and a
former congressman. Coelho has epilepsy,” Kaczaynski said. Coelho is
recognized as a primary sponsor of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Nov. 21, 2011 Times Union.com
The factious left dogs President Obama
- - President Obama is learning the hard way that you can't please
all of your fans all of the time. After riding a wave of liberal support
into the White House three years ago, Obama has found that some of those
same supporters are now among his most vocal critics. Every president has
trouble with his base, the experts note. In 1992, for instance, many
Republicans frustrated with President George H.W. Bush "voted for Ross Perot
and got Bill Clinton," former-Rep. Tony Coelho (D-Calif.), a one-time
majority whip who served as campaign chairman for Al Gore’s 2000
presidential run, told The Hill.
Coelho, for his part, said the emergence of Obama's liberal critics is not
only inevitable, but it's also a healthy part of democracy. "They're a
necessary part of the process," Coelho said. "They have to try to push the
incumbent back to where they think he should be.”The media like to play it
as absolute, because that's what gets the headlines," Coelho said. "But it
isn't absolute. It's a necessary part of the give-and-take underlying the
political process."
<more> Oct. 3, 2011 The Hill
Camp Coelho Begins Amid Foundation's Relocation to San Francisco and Addition of Two New Board Members - - Thanks to a Northern California non-profit and a team of volunteers including medical experts, about 30 kids with epilepsy are heading to Yosemite this weekend to spend five days camping in one of the country's premier national parks. Continuing its mission to provide an unmatched array of support programs and services to Northern Californians affected by epilepsy, the Epilepsy Foundation of Northern California (EFNC) this weekend kicks off the sixth annual hosting of Camp Coelho, which allows children aged 9-15 with epilepsy from across the state to forget about their condition, develop their social skills, and learn more about themselves and others in a safe environment at Yosemite National Park. Under the supervision of six nurses and neurologists from UCSF and the Children's Hospital of Oakland, Camp Coelho enables children with epilepsy to make new friends and realize that they're not alone living with this potentially life-threatening disorder. <more> Aug. 4, 2011 Epilepsy Foundation Press Release
PIPC
Presents at PCORI Meeting in Washington, D.C. - - Partnership to Improve
Patient Care (PIPC) Chairman Tony Coelho spoke yesterday at a meeting of the
Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute’s (PCORI) Board of Governors in
Washington, D.C. Coelho said, “PCORI continues to make progress in
establishing a patient-centered research program. I'm especially pleased
with their commitment to create a high-level PCORI staff position to engage
with patients, consumers and people with disabilities and ensure the
Institute achieves its patient-centered mandate. We look forward to
continuing working with the Institute to establish sound policies and open,
transparent procedures in support of research that is rigorous, objective
and patient-centered.”
<more> July 20, 2011 Sun Herald
Does Obama Have
Friends on the Hill? - - He’s the first sitting senator to be elected
president since Kennedy, but Barack Obama has lousy Hill ties. It is ironic
that the man who was pushed toward a presidential run after a basketball
game in the Senate gym needed a golf game to show him the benefits of
building closer personal relationships with congressional leaders. But that
is where Obama finds himself today as he tries to build a relationship of
trust with House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, so that, together, they can
craft a historic debt deal. Former Rep. Tony Coelho, D-Calif., links the
reticence to socialize with members of the other branch to what he sees as a
lack of passion for the details of governance. “Clinton loved governing, and
my view is that Obama doesn’t like governing,” said Coelho. “Now he may be
getting into it now finally. But in order to be a good president you’ve got
to love governing. And governing is getting to know the people in the House
and the Senate.” That, he said, “means getting to know these guys and gals
in the House and the Senate and what makes them tick. And how do you get
them to say yes when everybody else is telling them to say no.”
<more> July 13, 2011 National Journal
Advocates Say Proposed Medicaid Changes Would Disproportionately Hurt
Vulnerable Communities - - Plans circulating in Congress to modify the
Medicaid health care program threaten to put millions of America’s most
vulnerable citizens – minorities, seniors, children, and people with
disabilities – at risk, warn civil and human rights advocates. On a June 9
press call, Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference
on Civil and Human Rights, joined Ron Pollack, executive director of
Families USA, Tony Coelho, board chair of the American Association of People
with Disabilities and a former Congressman, Nancy LeaMond, executive vice
president of State and National Group at AARP, and Linda Guzman, a single
parent from Chapel Hill, N.C, to call attention to the negative effects of
proposals such as a balanced budget amendment, global spending caps or
turning Medicaid into block grant program, which would severely restrict the
ability of states to structure Medicaid programs effectively.
<more> June 13, 2011 civilrights.org
Midway Gold Names
Coelho Advisor for Government Affairs - - Midway Gold Corp. is pleased
to announce that it has engaged the Honorable Tony Coelho, former member of
the U.S. House of Representatives, to provide strategic advice to the
Company regarding its government relations initiatives and advocacy efforts.
Mr. Coelho was elected to Congress in 1978 and served for six terms until
1989. He served on the Agriculture, Interior, Veterans Affairs, and
Administration Committees during his tenure, specializing in disability
rights. He was the primary author and sponsor of the Americans with
Disabilities Act, widely recognized as the most important piece of civil
rights legislation in the last 30 years. In 1986, Mr. Coelho was elected
House Majority Whip.
<more> June 2, 2011 Business Wire
PIPC Members Participate in PCORI Board
Meeting -- Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC) Chairman Tony
Coelho today presented before the Board of Governors of the Patient Centered
Outcomes and Research Institute (PCORI) in New York City, commending PCORI
for its progress to date and recommending next steps to advance
patient-centeredness in comparative effectiveness research (CER).
<more> May 18, 2011 Partnership to Improve Patient Care Press
Release
PIPC
Publishes White Paper on CER Priority-Setting - - The Partnership to
Improve Patient Care (PIPC) today announced the release of a white-paper on
priority-setting in comparative effectiveness research (CER). The paper,
“Priority-Setting for Comparative Effectiveness Research: A Review of Key
Elements,” is intended to help the Patient Centered Outcomes and Research
Institute’s (PCORI) Board of Governors as they work to establish a program
for patient-centered CER. “We hope that our paper is helpful to the PCORI
board as they move forward in their important mission of enhancing the
quality of health care for American patients,” said PIPC Chairman Tony
Coelho. “If done right, CER will provide valuable information to help
patients and doctors come to better informed medical decisions. An important
initial step in this will be identifying research priorities that matter
most to patients and providers.”
<more> March 24, 2011 PIPC Press Release
Getting Comparative Effectiveness Research Right Means Making It
Patient-Centered - - By Tony Coelho - - I have had epilepsy since
I was fifteen. Back in the 1950s many people—my parents included— believed
that my "fits" were caused by a spiritual force. Growing up with this
neurological disorder and dealing with the misinformation surrounding its
causes and treatment was difficult. My disability also got me kicked out of
seminary. Fortunately, since then, the world has changed for the better for
those of us with disabilities. It wasn’t until I was a young adult that I
received a proper diagnosis. The experience of coping with something I
couldn’t fully understand or control, however, continues to shape who I am
in my personal and professional life. I am convinced that we patients must
work to be well informed about medical conditions and health care options.
"Patient-centeredness" also motivates my ongoing involvement in comparative
effectiveness research (CER).
<more> Feb. 14, 2011 Biotech-now
McCarthy's role as House GOP whip marked by early gaffes -- Rep. Kevin
McCarthy is still finding his way as California's highest-ranking GOP
lawmaker. Following some embarrassing new smudges on his Capitol Hill
won-loss record, the Republican representing Bakersfield must demonstrate
anew the vote-wrangling skills demanded of him as House majority whip. As
the first lawmaker from the San Joaquin Valley to hold the whip position
since Merced County native Tony Coelho cajoled House Democratic troops in
the late 1980s, McCarthy is in a pivotal position.
<more> Feb. 14, 2011 Fresno Bee
Former Congressman Tony Coelho criticizes
elected officials - - Former Central Valley Rep. Tony Coelho came
to St. Patrick's Parish in Merced on Thursday, urging increased
responsibility from elected public officials after the recent shootings in
Tucson, Ariz. Speaking to an audience of about 50 people at the Catholic
Professional Business Club of Merced, the 68-year-old Los Banos native
singled out the media for not holding politicians accountable for the lack
of civility in political discourse.
<more> Jan. 14, 2011 Merced Sun-Star
Former Merced Congressman Coelho to speak at
church Thursday - - Former Merced Congressman Tony Coelho is scheduled
to speak at the Catholic Professional Business Club of Merced 7:30 a.m.
Thursday at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Merced. Tickets are available
to the public. Elected to Congress in 1978, Coelho served in the U.S. House
of Representatives until 1989. In 1986 he was elected by his colleagues to
be House majority whip, the No. 2 leadership position in the House.
<more> Jan. 11, 2011 Merced Sun-Star
PIPC Issues White Paper on CER Process - -
The Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC) today released a white paper
that defines a “Procedural Framework for the Conduct of Comparative
Effectiveness Research.” The paper and its executive summary provide
guidance for policy-makers, patient and providers for establishing CER
procedures that foster openness, transparency and patient-centeredness. The
paper evaluates procedural requirements for the Patient-Centered Outcomes
Research Institute (PCORI) defined in the Patient Protection and Affordable
Care Act, as well as processes already put in place by the Agency for
Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).
<more> Nov. 23, 2010 PPIC Press Release
Comparative Effectiveness Research Inventory Launched - - The
Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC) today launched the CER Inventory,
an online research tool that gives researchers, providers and patients
comprehensive information on federally funded comparative effectiveness
research. “The PIPC CER Inventory responds to a gap identified by the
Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research, which
noted a need for tools to take inventory of ongoing CER projects,” PIPC
Chairman Tony Coelho said.
<more> Nov. 16, 2010 PIPC Press Release
Coelho: Putting Patients at the Center of Comparative Effectiveness Research
- - By Tony Coelho, Special to Roll Call - - I’ve been living
with epilepsy for more than 50 years. And although this disability has
contributed to both highs and lows throughout my life, it has served as my
primary motivation to see underserved and underrepresented populations —
throughout our nation — get the attention they need and deserve. Most
recently, it led to my commitment to ensuring patients have good information
on their health care options by supporting a national investment in
comparative effectiveness research that is centered on the needs of patients
and their caregivers.
<more>
Oct. 7, 2010 Roll Call
Patient Advocate’s Perspective On Patient-Centered Comparative Effectiveness
Research - - By Tony Coelho Tony Coelho (tcoelho@improvepatientcare.org)
is chair of the Partnership to Improve Patient Care, in Washington, D.C. He
is a former US representative from California’s 15th congressional district
- - The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act created a new phrase
and concept: patient-centered outcomes research. The author of this
commentary, who served as a member of the US House of Representatives from
California, is also a patient with epilepsy and a patient advocate. He
consulted with lawmakers in the passage of the health reform law. Here he
draws on his varied experiences to provide perspective on how the law will
provide the necessary policy framework for patient-centered comparative
effectiveness research. Elements of that framework include the meaningful
engagement of multiple stakeholders, most especially patients;
acknowledgment of individual differences among patients and the importance
of advancing personalized medicine; transparency and opportunities to
participate; a broad, clinically focused research agenda; and the need to
communicate results appropriately.
<more> Oct. 7, 2010 Healthaffairs.org
Comparative effectiveness research panel made up
mostly of doctors - - Physicians comprise the majority of a new
21-member panel that will guide federal efforts to compare how effective
different treatments, devices and drugs are on a particular condition or
disease. The nonprofit Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, created
by the national system health reform law, will have at least 11 physicians.
Acting U.S. Comptroller General Gene L. Dodaro announced his appointments
for 19 board members on Sept. 23. The remaining two slots will be occupied
by the head of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the
director of the National Institutes of Health, or others that they
designate. "The members of the PCORI board have an essential role in
establishing a new program of research that is patient-centered, sustained
and credible," said Tony Coelho, chair of the Partnership to Improve Patient
Care, a group of health care organizations that supports comparative
effectiveness research.
<more> Oct. 6, 2010 American Medical News
Tony Coelho Promotes Patient-Centered CER at
Health Affairs Event --Tony Coelho, chairman of the Partnership to
Improve Patient Care (PIPC), today participated in “Comparative
Effectiveness Research Enters New Era,” a Health Affairs briefing on
comparative effectiveness research (CER) that launched the publication’s CER-focused
October issue. In addition to participating on the briefing’s “National
Strategy Panel” where he spoke on how his personal experiences with epilepsy
led him to patient advocacy with a focus on CER, Mr. Coelho also penned an
article which appears in the October issue of Health Affairs. The article,
“Perspective from a Patient-Advocate, Patient-Centered Comparative
Effectiveness Research: What is it? And How Will We Get There?” includes
Coelho’s thoughts on the best ways to achieve patient-centered CER.
<more> Oct. 6, 2010 PIPC Press Release
Morgan
Stanley’s Nides Named to State Department Post - - President Barack
Obama is nominating Thomas Nides, Morgan Stanley’s chief operating officer,
as deputy secretary of state for management and resources, the White House
said in a statement. Nides, 49, has been with Morgan Stanley, the
sixth-largest U.S. bank by assets, since 2005. His resume includes a
background in politics and public relations, including a stint as chief of
staff for then-Democratic Connecticut U.S. Senator Joseph Lieberman during
his failed vice-presidential campaign in 2000. Nides spent four years as an
executive assistant to former House Speaker Thomas Foley, Democrat of
Washington, and was special assistant to former House Majority Whip Tony
Coelho, Democrat of California, from 1986 to 1989.
<more> Oct. 1, 2010 Bloomberg
Tony
Coelho to Participate in Health Affairs Briefing--Tony Coelho, Chair of
the Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC), will participate in a
Comparative Effectiveness Research (CER) briefing on Tuesday, October 5 to
launch the October issue of Health Affairs. Mr. Coelho will discuss the need
for patient-centered CER during the morning discussion. The October issue of
Health Affairs, and the day’s discussion, will focus on the opportunities
and challenges facing CER.
<more> Oct. 1, 2010 PIPC Press Release
PIPC Welcomes Appointment of PCORI Board - -
The Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC) today welcomed the naming of
the Board of Governors of the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI)
by the Government Accountability Office (GAO). “Creation of the Patient
Centered Outcomes Research Institute is an important step in advancing
comparative effectiveness research for the benefit of patients and
providers,” PIPC Chairman Tony Coelho said. “The members of the PCORI board
have an essential role in establishing a new program of research that is
patient-centered, sustained, and credible.” Coelho added, “PIPC has been a
leading supporter of the provisions of the health reform law that create the
Institute, and we look forward to working with the Board to advance the
Institute's mission.”<more>
Sept. 25, 2010 PPIC Press Release
Enable America celebrates 20th anniversary of ADA
- -Enable America, a non-profit organization devoted to empowering people
with disabilities to achieve independence through employment, is inviting
the public to join the organization in celebrating the 20th anniversary of
the Americans with Disability Act (ADA). “An Evening with Tony Coelho and
Richard Salem” will be held on the evening of October 5, at the Hyatt
Regency in Tampa. “As a primary sponsor of the ADA, Congressman Coelho can
offer unique perspective on what it took to get where we are today, as well
as the challenges we continue to face on behalf of people with
disabilities,” said Steve LaBour, Executive Director of Enable America.
“It’s an honor to have him join us for the event; we look forward to an
extraordinary evening.”
<more> Sept. 25, 2010
PIPC Urges HHS to Work in Conjunction with
Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute to Develop CER Database - -
This week, Tony Coelho, chairman of the Partnership to Improve Patient Care
(PIPC) sent a letter to the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation
at Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Sherry Glied, urging the
agency to work in close coordination with the new Patient-Center Outcomes
Research Institute (PCORI) as it considers developing an inventory of
comparative effectiveness research (CER). PIPC sent the letter in response
to HHS soliciting recommendations on how to build a CER database.
<more> Aug. 12, 2010 PPIC Press Release
AAPD Applauds U.S. Senate for Passing 21st
Century Communications and Video Accessibility Legislation for People with
Disabilities -- The American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD),
the country's largest cross-disability membership organization, commends the
U.S. Senate for passage of the "Twenty-first Century Communications and
Video Accessibility Act" (S. 3304) by unanimous consent on August 5. "This
is a significant victory for all people with disabilities," said Tony
Coelho, AAPD's board chair. "The way all people connect has changed since
the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) passed 20 years ago, and with this
legislation, people with disabilities will not be left behind. In this year
of the 20th anniversary of the ADA, the U.S. Senate recognizes there is
still work to be done going forward, especially regarding communications and
technology."
<more> Aug. 9, 2010 AAPD Press Release
Apps 4 Access Will Celebrate the 20th Anniversary
of the Americans with Disabilities Act - - Disability Power and Pride (DPP),
with support from AT&T*, is hosting Apps4Access on Capitol Hill, an event
highlighting the important role that applications play in improving
accessibility. "Access to technology is critical to members of the
disability community and our society as a whole," said Tony Coelho, Chairman
of DPP, former Majority Whip of the House of Representatives and a leader in
the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. "The Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA) played a critical role in breaking down barriers for
people with disabilities. In the last 20 years there have been great
technological advancements that provide new opportunities — and challenges.
As we look towards the future, accessible applications will play a critical
role in providing new 'electronic curb-cuts' to millions of Americans with
disabilities."
<more> July 23, 2010 Disabled World.com
DOJ Celebrates ADA As New Regulations Are
Proposed - - Justice Department officials past and present celebrated
the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act Friday, the same
day as the Civil Rights Division announced it was considering new
accessibility rules for movies, equipment and furniture, 911 services and
websites. Attorney General Eric Holder, Assistant Attorney General for Civil
Rights Thomas E. Perez, former Attorney General Dick Thornburgh and former
Rep. Tony Coelho (D-Calif.) — the primary sponsor of the law — spoke at the
ceremony.
<more> July 23, 2010 Mainjustice.com
Department of Labor Celebrates The ADA - -
Please join Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis and Assistant Secretary for
Disability Employment Policy Kathleen Martinez at the Department of Labor’s
celebration of the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA). The event is scheduled for July 30, 2010 from 2:00
p.m. until 3:00 p.m. in the Great Hall of the Department’s Frances Perkins
Building in Washington, D.C. Our keynote speaker for the event is former
United States Congressman Tony Coelho, an author and sponsor of the ADA and
Chair of the Epilepsy Foundation of America, who will share his thoughts on
the impact of the ADA. <more>
July 23, 2010 Jfactivist.com
Putting Patients First Key to Comparative
Effectiveness Research - - The Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC)
today hosted “Delivering on Patient-Centered CER” a forum that focused on
the next steps in achieving patient-centered comparative effectiveness
research (CER) in Washington, DC. "PIPC has worked long and hard to ensure
that patients and health care providers are the focus of comparative
effectiveness research, and we are pleased that the health reform law
includes language to achieve this,” PIPC chairman Tony Coelho said.
<more> July 23, 2010 Sun Herald.com
New Group To Raise Cash For Disability-Friendly
Candidates - - A group of politically connected disability advocates is
forming what’s believed to be a first-of-its-kind organization to bankroll
political candidates who support disability issues. The Disability Power &
Pride Political Action Committee, or PAC, will host its first fund-raiser on
Monday after forming little more than a week ago. Already, however,
organizers say they’re garnering broad support. Backers include American
Association of People with Disabilities head Andrew Imparato and former
Congressman Tony Coelho who helped push the Americans with Disabilities Act
through Congress.
<more> July 22, 2010 Disabilityscoop.com
Remarks as Prepared for Delivery by Attorney
General Eric Holder at the American Association of People With Disabilities
"Justice For All" Event --The following was released today by the U.S.
Department of Justice: Thank you, Tony [Coelho]. I appreciate your kind
words, but I am especially grateful for your outstanding leadership. As a
long-time advocate for equal opportunity, as a principal author of the
Americans with Disabilities Act, and as Chair of the AAPD's Board of
Directors, your dedication and hard work have helped to create the progress
we celebrate today. And I want to thank you, Andy Imparato, and the entire
AAPD team for bringing us together to reflect on what has been – and what
still must be – achieved to ensure our nation's promise of justice for all.
<more> July 22, 2010 Sacramento Bee
Gores' Eldest Daughter Karenna Separates from
Husband of 12 Years - - Al and Tipper Gore aren't the only ones in their
family facing marital problems. The couple's eldest daughter, Karenna Gore
Schiff, 36, has separated from her husband of 12 years, Andrew Schiff, 44.
Tony Coelho, Gore's former campaign manager, told ABC News Karenna was very
close to her father and took on a lot of responsibility. "She was Al's
closest adviser," said Coelho, who was surprised by the news of Karenna's
separation. "He sought her advice directly.”
<more> June 15, 2010 ABC News
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| ABC News |
PIPC Encourages Minority Participation in CER
Studies - - he chairman of the Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC),
Tony Coelho, encouraged racial and ethnic minority Americans to get more
involved in comparative effectiveness research (CER) studies as a way to
ensure that African Americans and other people of color have access to the
latest treatment options and research available. He also called on the
research community to look at ways to include all Americans in their work.
<more>
April 20, 2010 PPIC Press Release
PIPC
Applauds New Health Care Bill’s CER Language - - The Partnership to
Improve Patient Care (PIPC) applauded President Obama's signing of the
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which includes provisions
creating a new program for patient-centered comparative effectiveness
research. “The Partnership to Improve Patient Care has been working for over
a year in support of patient-centered CER, and we’re very happy to see it
included in the final health care reform bill,” PIPC chairman Tony Coelho
said. “Every body is different, so it's critical that CER reflect these
differences. This legislation will help ensure that CER is used to help
doctors and patients make the best treatment decisions possible, and not to
set coverage guidelines.
<more> March 23, 2010 PIPC Press Release
How
Dems can win with health care - - By Tony Coelho - - President
Barack Obama and the Democrats have won the battle for health care reform.
Thanks to their leadership and perseverance, 32 million uninsured Americans
emerged as victors from last weekend’s ugly war of words on Capitol Hill.
But at this historic moment, Democrats’ and Republicans’ only point of
agreement is not that a battle has been won or lost but that the parties
will wage open warfare through Nov. 2. Efforts at bipartisanship and
inclusiveness are over. The Democrats must return to the trenches, aim and
fire back at the Republican smear machine that has not — and will not —
relent.
<more>
March 25, 2010 Politico.com
Hoyer hitches star to big vote - - As the No.
2 member of the House, Steny H. Hoyer of Maryland has a lot riding on the
outcome of today's health care vote. If the measure is defeated, some
congressional aides predict privately that Democrats will lose their House
majority in the fall elections. Hoyer's job as majority leader would
disappear, along with its power and influence. "This is a base issue," said
Tony Coelho, a former California congressman and former head of the party's
House campaign committee. "What a lot of Democrats [in Congress] need to do
is stop worrying about these people who are going to be against them whether
they vote for the bill or against the bill. What they need to be doing is
identifying the people that this bill helps."
<more>
March 21, 2010 Baltimore Sun
Tony Coelho helps celebrate 20th
anniversary of ADA - - At a press event at the Capitol Building on
Tuesday, February 23, 2010, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), House Majority Leader
Steny Hoyer
(MD-5)
and Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-5) joined the leadership of
the Justice For All Action Network (JFAAN) in kicking off the celebration of
the 20th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Tony Coelho,
primary author and sponsor of the ADA and chair of AAPD’s board, introduced
the event and its speakers. He began by thanking those present and honoring
the legislators and the ongoing leadership of the JFAAN steering committee
organizations.
<more>
Feb. 27, 2010 JFActivist
Obama's Budget Increases Funding for Medical
Research That Compares Treatment Options - - The Obama administration,
in an effort to forge ahead with its sometimes-contentious effort to compare
various medical treatments, is proposing a big boost in funding for the
agency that oversees the research. Tony Coelho, chairman of the Partnership
to Improve Patient Care, a group that opposes using comparative
effectiveness research for insurance-coverage decisions, said patients and
physicians must be involved in any federal efforts in comparative
effectiveness research and that Congress should closely track how the money
is spent. “As this provision goes forward I would think a lot of members in
the House and the Senate would want to know a little bit more about what the
administration has in mind and how they want to spend this additional money
as opposed to what they’re doing with the money they already have,” Coelho
said.
<more> Feb. 1,2010 Kaiser Health News
The New ‘Taint of Incumbency’ Incumbents on Both
Sides of the Aisle Surprisingly Vulnerable - - While Republicans are
hoping Brown’s victory foreshadows a GOP landslide, a number of political
experts are warning that the country’s restless anxiety — as evidenced not
only in Massachusetts, but in Virginia, New Jersey, and now Florida as well
— is less a backlash against Democrats in particular than a rebuke of the
business-as-usual politics of Capitol Hill in general. “The public is mad,
and they’re prepared to take it out on the establishment,” said Tony Coelho,
the former California congressman who served as campaign chairman for Al
Gore’s 2000 presidential run. “That doesn’t just mean the party in power.
That means everyone.”
<more>
Jan. 27, 2010 Washington Independent
Patient Group Supports CER Language in Senate Health Care Reform Bill - -
The Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC) today applauded Senator
Reid’s Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act for including strong
patient-centered comparative effectiveness research (CER) language. The CER
language is based on the approach taken by Senators Baucus and Conrad in
their CER bill (S. 1213), which is supported by over 100 organizations
across the country, representing patients, providers, people with
disabilities, and minority health organizations. “Although we’re still
reviewing the language, everything we’ve seen so far indicates that the CER
provisions in the Senate bill are focused on patient and provider needs and
include many of the safeguards the people in our community have been looking
for," PIPC chairman and epilepsy patient Tony Coelho said.
<more>
Nov. 19, 2009 Partnership to Improve Patient Care Press
Release
Tony Coelho to Participate in Comparative
Effectiveness Research Panel --Tony Coelho, chairman of the
non-partisan, patient-focused, grassroots organization Partnership to
Improve Patient Care (PIPC) and author of the Americans with Disabilities
Act, will participate in a panel discussion on comparative effectiveness
research (CER) tomorrow at the Blue Skies and Brickwork Conference: Access
to Care from the White House to the State House to Your House. Coelho will
use this opportunity to discuss the importance of patient-centered
comparative effectiveness, PIPC’s support of the CER provisions in Senate
Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus’s health reform proposal, and how CER
relates to individual medical choices in the context of the current
healthcare reform discussion.
<more>
Sept. 22, 2009 Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC)
PIPC Supports Comparative Effectiveness Research
Language in New Senate Health Reform Bill --The Partnership to Improve
Patient Care (PIPC), a non-partisan, patient- focused, grassroots
organization focused on securing patient-centered comparative effectiveness
research (CER) voiced its strong support of the comparative effectiveness
research provisions in Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus’s health
reform proposal released today. “Patients and health care providers across
the country can benefit from the strong, patient-centered approach to
comparative effectiveness research that is included in this proposal,” PIPC
Chairman and epilepsy patient Tony Coelho said. “Sen. Baucus’s measure
creates an independent Institute governed by patients, providers, government
officials and other stakeholders, and further strengthens safeguards to
protect patient access to the treatment options they need. This provides a
sound framework for independent, sustained, and objective research that is
focused on the needs of patients.”
<more> Sept. 16, 2009 PIPC Press Release
For Obama, Less is More on Health Care - -
Sometime in the late spring or early summer of 1993, those of us responsible
for “message” in the Clinton White House (where I served as Press Secretary)
convened a meeting of seasoned Washington hands to help us rethink
communications strategy. While the new president was in so many ways an
effective communicator, something wasn’t working. We had lost control of the
dialogue on any number of issues. Tony Coelho, the politically astute former
California Congressman, was among those who showed up to help. “I just flew
into National Airport,” he said, when he arrived. “All the televisions along
the concourse were on, and the president was speaking. But no one—no
one—stopped to hear what he was saying.”
<more> Sept. 15, 2009 Vanity Fair
Groups Back Health Reform, but Seek Cover - -
The top lobbyists for every major sector of the health care industry
publicly insist they are squarely behind the Obama administration’s health
care reform. But as the debate gets down to the details, the lines dividing
friend from foe are getting blurry. Each industry group is also working
quietly to scuttle or reshape some element of the administration’s proposals
that might hurt profits — usually some measure aimed at cost control. The
drug industry, for example, struck a deal with the Obama administration and
is now waging a major advertising campaign to help push the health care
overhaul. But the drug makers also abhor one of its cost-cutting components:
a government initiative to study the effectiveness of treatments that the
companies fear could mean lower payments for certain drugs. So drug
lobbyists have enlisted the help of Tony Coelho, a former Democratic
congressman who cites his battle with epilepsy to make their case. “I don’t
want some government folks making a decision because of a cookie-cutter
approach to health care saying, ‘We will only approve the three most common
drugs,’ so then my drugs are not approved, and I am going to have seizures,”
said Mr. Coelho, the chairman of an industry-backed group called the
Partnership to Improve Patient Care. “And it is going to cost people a lot
more money because I am going to be in an emergency room.”
<more>
Sept. 12, 2009 NY Times
Kennedy had impact on California immigrants,
children - – Tony Coelho vividly remembers his first meeting with Sen.
Edward Kennedy, a man who helped change the face of California. It was May
1965. Coelho was a young Capitol Hill aide for a San Joaquin Valley
congressman, when Kennedy summoned a dozen or so staffers to discuss
immigration reform. "I listened to the substance of what he had to say,"
Coelho recalled Wednesday, "but mostly I was absolutely amazed at his
command of the body politic."
<more>
Aug. 27, 2009 Sacramento Bee
AAPD Grieves Loss of Champion in Kennedy -
-The American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), the country's
largest cross-disability membership organization, released a statement
following the passing of Senator Ted Kennedy, an unequaled champion for
civil rights in the United States Senate for half a century: “"Ted Kennedy
understood better than anyone how the struggle for equal opportunity for
disabled Americans was an essential part of this nation's broader commitment
to civil and human rights," said Tony Coelho, Chair of AAPD. "I have never
worked with a more effective legislator, and I am deeply saddened to have
lost a good friend," Coelho continued.
<more>
Aug. 27, 2009 American Association of People with Disabilities
(AAPD)
Rep. Schrader Pushing For Comparative
Effectiveness Research Institute - - Comparative Effectiveness Research.
Pretty clunky name, right? But it isn’t really hard to understand. It’s
research that helps doctors wade through the ocean of clinical studies out
there, narrowing down which treatments are proven most effective, and
which haven’t been well-explored. Tony Coelho “What we’re talking about
is who’s at the table in the decision-making process.” Former Congressman
Tony Coehlo now works for the Partnership for Patient Care. It’s funded by
the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America. The pharmaceutical
group declined to comment for this story, but referred us to Coelho, who
has guarded praise for the amendment.
<more>
Aug. 25, 2009 Oregon Public Broadcasting
Political vet Hatfield to lobby for state's wine
industry - - The California wine industry has added San Joaquin Valley
political veteran Fred Hatfield to its already muscular lobbying ranks. A
Fresno State graduate who held congressional staff positions before securing
a presidential appointment to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission,
Hatfield now runs his own strategic advising shop. He has signed up the San
Francisco-based Wine Institute as a client, newly filed documents show. The
Wine Institute has paid Hatfield $15,000 for work this year, new filings
show. Separately, lobbying records show the San Francisco-based industry
group paid Dutko Worldwide $40,000, James Clawson $40,000 and its own
in-house lobbying staff $99,677 since January.
<more>
Aug. 4, 2009 Fresno Bee
Cardoza links Pelosi to centrists of caucus -
- When the House Democratic leadership assembles each week in the Speaker’s
Conference Room, Rep. Dennis Cardoza (D-Calif.) is the only lawmaker in the
meeting with no official title and no leadership staff. He has no real
reason to be there. Except that Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) wants him on
hand. If he did have a title, it would probably be “Blue Dog ambassador.”
Tony Coelho, a former House leader who held Cardoza’s seat before Condit,
said such “listening posts” are essential for congressional leaders. “People
like to tell people what they think. They don’t want to tell leadership what
they think,” Coelho said. “You don’t want to be seen as negative.”
<more>
July 22, 2009 The Hill.com
‘New Democrat” Kind has role in national health
care reform - - Kind also has a reputation as something of a maverick.
His efforts, so far unsuccessful, to eliminate farm subsidies "have
perplexed people in agriculture because dairy subsidies matter so much to
his district," said Jerry Hagstrom, the ex-president of the North American
Agricultural Journalists and an agriculture reporter for CongressDaily. But
Tony Coelho -- the former House Democratic whip who now chairs the
Partnership to Improve Patient Care, a prime backer of the comparative
effectiveness bill -- sees him as a staunch partner. "To have someone like
Ron, who is considered an up-and-comer, is very significant," he said. "The
New Democrats are a group of younger, aggressive members. They intend to be
around for a while and want to be effective in Congress." Members of
Coelho's group run the gamut from major health care industry players (the
Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, Biotechnology Industry
Organization) to medical specialty societies (cardiology, gastroenterology,
urology) to patient advocacy groups (for autism, epilepsy, mental illness)
and even a conservative legal group (the Washington Legal Foundation). "We
are supporters of comparative effectiveness research," Coelho said. "We just
want to make sure it's done right. We don't want the government dictating to
patients and doctors what kind of health care we should have. But we want
the research done and to make sure that patients and doctors have it."
<more>
July 13, 2009 WisPolitics.com
Tony Coelho named AAPD board chairman, new board
members announced - - The American Association of People with
Disabilities (AAPD), the country’s largest cross-disability membership
organization,
is pleased to announce AAPD’s new executive board and board members. AAPD’s
board of directors elected former Democratic Whip and co-author of the ADA,
Tony Coelho (pictured), as board Chairman; Ralph Boyd, Executive Vice
President, Community Relations, Freddie Mac and former Assistant Attorney
General of the United States for Civil Rights under President George W. Bush
as Vice Chair; CEO; Joyce Bender, founder of Bender Consulting Services,
Inc. as Secretary and Meredith Ryan-Reid, a Vice President and Producer at
MARSH USA Inc. as Treasurer. Disability rights advocate Cheryl Sensenbrenner
is the Immediate Past Chair and will continue to serve on the AAPD board
Executive Committee.
<more>
July 3, 2009 AAPD Press Release
Nudging Centrists Into the Health Care Corral - - Against Republican charges that they are engineering a government takeover of health care, Democrats have been trying to get party centrists on board as they compile their overhaul plans. Others include Dennis Cardoza of California, a member of the fiscally conservative “Blue Dogs” who attends leadership meetings, and Bruce Braley of Iowa, a vice chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and a leader of the new Populist Caucus. “She’s been trying to include more centrists like Dennis Cardoza in a liberal inner circle,” said former Majority Whip Tony Coelho, D-Calif. (1979-89). As chairman of the Partnership to Improve Patient Care, an alliance of patient and industry groups, Coelho has been pushing for a consensus health care initiative. <more> June 17, 2009 CQ Politics.com
New Effort Reopens a Medical Minefield- - A
back-pain researcher, Dr. Richard Deyo recalls the uproar the last time
federal officials tried to suggest how doctors should practice their
profession. But potential opponents — which include medical products
companies, some doctors and their political allies — warn that the
comparative effectiveness movement could lead to inadequate treatment for
some patients and even the rationing of health care. “It is not difficult to
see how you can get on a slippery slope very easily,” said Tony Coelho, a
former Democratic congressman who is head of a new industry-backed
Washington group called the Partnership to Improve Patient Care, formed to
lobby on the comparative effectiveness effort.
<more> May 7, 2009 NY Times
The Great Debate - - With the passage of the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), comparative effectiveness research (CER) has become a buzz word. And, although this research method has been around a little over 30 years, it was the $1.1 billion allocation from the stimulus bill that sparked controversy. CER could help lead to a more personalized medicine approach if the government takes a stand to bring the elderly, minority, and disabled communities into the research. ARRA calls for a Federal Coordinating Council to be created to coordinate CER efforts for the government. This 15- member committee includes minority and disabled-community representatives. Tony Coelho, chair of the Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC), hopes the Coordinating Council operates in an “open and transparent manner that allows members of the health care community including patients, providers, people with disabilities, and minority organizations to participate in the research process and that all of these voices have a seat at the table when determining how CER will work.” This committee will assess where the government grants and money should go. The committee will also see that under-represented groups are involved in clinical trials. <more> May 7, 2009 Drug Discovery & Development - April 27, 2009
Merck, Biogen Boost Lobbying to Defy Obama’s Drug
Comparisons - - .S. drugmakers led by Merck & Co. and Biogen Idec Inc.
are stepping up their fight against President Barack Obama’s move to
encourage cheaper medical care. Already the biggest spender on influencing
policy, the drug industry is hiring well-known individuals, some with
stories of personal battles against disease. They include Tony Coelho, a
former House Democratic leader who has epilepsy; Andrea LaRue, counsel to
Tom Daschle when he was Senate Democratic leader; and the firm of Democratic
fundraiser Tony Podesta, brother of Obama adviser John Podesta.
<more>
April 17, 2009 Bloomberg.com
Big name donors fuel McAuliffe's bid for
Virginia governor- - The Donald is backing The Macker. Donald Trump is
just one of many big name donors funding Terry McAuliffe's campaign to win
the Virginia governor's mansion this fall, according to newly released
financial disclosure reports — and he isn't even among the most generous
givers. Other national political players who gave to McAuliffe include
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, former Al Gore campaign manager Tony
Coelho, former Clinton administration adviser Doug Sosnik, and former Dick
Gephardt and John Kerry strategist Steve Elmendorf.
<more>
April 17, 2009 CNN
Mondovi teen to discuss epilepsy with Congress- - Poeschel, an honor
student, varsity softball pitcher, member of the Midnight Riders Saddle Club
and 2008 Rodeo Queen, was one of several dozen youths selected to take part
in the Epilepsy Foundation's Kids Speak Up! campaign, which runs through
Tuesday in Washington, D.C. The program provides an opportunity for children
with epilepsy and their parents to visit the nation's capital, meet with
legislators and tell their personal stories. "These children are serving as
ambassadors for those living with epilepsy to remind legislators that their
decisions could mean the difference between help for today and hope for
tomorrow for their constituents," said Tony Coelho, Epilepsy Foundation
board chairman.
<more>
April 3, 2009 Leader-Telegram Wisconsin
US HHS
Announces 'Comparative Effectiveness' Council - - The U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services on Thursday unveiled a council that would steer
stimulus funds toward efforts to compare medical treatments. Democratic
lawmakers and Obama administration officials have hailed the federally
funded research, known as "comparative effectiveness" research, as a
linchpin for broader efforts to overhaul the nation's health care system.
The comparative effectiveness research funding in the stimulus also drew
concern from minority and disability groups, who complained that past
research has not taken into account a broad enough population sample. The
result, the groups say, is that the study ignores differences between
patients. In a recent interview, former congressman Tony Coelho, who has
epilepsy, said "women and minorities are not included or in such minor
numbers that it doesn't reflect the population of our communities" and that
minorities often ended up “at the bottom of the stick."
<more>
March 20, 2009 Dow Jones
Partnership urges new federal coordinating council to provide full openness and transparency -- Tony Coelho, Chairman of the Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC) released today the following statement concerning the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' announcement of members of the Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research: "PIPC applauds HHS for moving rapidly to appoint a list of accomplished health care experts as members of the Federal Coordinating Council, and for including representatives of the minority and disability communities. As required by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, this Council can play a valuable role in coordinating various research activities throughout the federal government. <more> March 20, 2009 PIPC Press Release
Campaign Launched To Ensure Patients Receive
Necessary Care Despite Comparative Comparative Effectiveness Research -
- The Partnership to Improve Patient Care on Thursday unveiled a new
campaign hoping to influence the debate over comparative effectiveness
research, the AP/Kansas City Star reports. The economic stimulus package
includes $1.1 billion for comparative effectiveness research. According to
the Obama administration, the goal of the research is to develop good
information to ensure the best outcomes for doctors and patients, as well as
to improve the U.S. health system's performance. PIPC is funded by the
Advanced Medical Technology Association, the Alliance for Aging Research,
Easter Seals and Friends of Cancer Research. The group also includes some
minority and women's groups, most of which are nonpaying members. Some
biotechnology and drug companies, which could lose money if a treatment they
developed is found to be less effective than a competitor's, also are
members of the group. According to PIPC spokesperson and former Rep. Tony
Coelho (D-Calif.), who co-sponsored the Americans With Disabilities Act, the
issue of comparative effectiveness research comes down to whether patients
would get the medical care they need. There also are concerns that
comparative effectiveness research could become cost effectiveness research,
which might deny patients necessary treatment.
<more>
March 17, 2009 KaiserNetwork.org
New Debate on
How to Decide Best Health Treatments -
- People's lives and plenty of money are at stake when it comes to
determining which medical treatments work best. So some prominent health
industry and patient advocacy groups are trying to reframe the debate over
how such decisions are made in order to ensure their interests are
protected. Spurred by $1.1 billion in the recent economic stimulus
bill for "comparative effectiveness research," their coalition unveiled a
new campaign Thursday with a prominent Democrat and disability rights
advocate, former California Rep. Tony Coelho, as its spokesman. Coelho, who
suffers from epilepsy and was a key sponsor of the Americans With
Disabilities Act, said the issue comes down to whether disabled people and
other patients would get the medical care they need. "On this issue we need
to be at the table," Coelho said in an interview with The Associated Press.
"Comparative analysis is wonderful, if it's done appropriately." <more>
March 13, 2009 WIBW.com
CSUN Conference To Explore How Assistive
Technology Can Help Injured Vets, Aging Baby Boomers - - Military
personnel returning from war with missing limbs and other physical
disabilities. Aging baby boomers with failing knees and other mobility
problems. Helping them return to full, active lives can be a challenge.
Thousands of people from around the world—from entrepreneurs and tech
industry executives to academics and persons with disabilities— are expected
to gather later this month near the Los Angeles International Airport to
explore new ways technology can help the disabled. Cal State Northridge’s
24th Annual International Technology and Persons with Disabilities
Conference—the largest of its kind in the world—is scheduled to take place
March 16-21 at the Los Angeles Airport Marriott and Renaissance Montura
hotels. Former California Congressman Anthony Coelho, a leader in the
disabilities arena and sponsor of the landmark Americans With Disabilities
Act, will give the conference’s keynote address at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday,
March 17, at the Renaissance Montura Hotel.
<more>
March 9, 2009 CSUN Press Release
AAPD Gala to Honor Emerging Leaders in Disability
Community- - Luminaries from the disability and business communities and
government will gather March 4 to celebrate three emerging disability rights
leaders at the annual American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD)
Leadership Gala at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC. The
event, which will be held from 5:45 to 9 p.m., will honor Paul G. Hearne
Award winners Stephanie Enyart, Victor Santiago Pineda and Maureen
McKinnon-Tucker. The three were chosen by a national advisory committee to
receive $10,000 each to further their work in the disability community. The
Leadership Gala will be emceed by The Honorable Tony Coelho, the former
Majority Whip of the U.S. House of Representatives and an author of the
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
<more>
March 7, 2009 AAPD Press Release
Daschle’s Ambitions Collided, Friends Say
- - When Tom Daschle said he
was quitting his lucrative consulting job to become President Obama’s health
secretary, an old Republican rival from the Senate, Trent Lott, teased him
about giving up the good life. “Tom is a believer,” said Mr. Lott, who led
the Republicans when Mr. Daschle was Democratic leader. “He was very serious
about wanting to take on that cause. I couldn’t even get him to joke with me
about it.” For four years, ever since voters in South Dakota turned him out
of office, Mr. Daschle has seemed to yearn for the power and prestige of his
public life. He vowed not to become a lobbyist, telling friends that
salesmanship was beneath him. He spent as many as two days a week working
without pay at a liberal research institution on issues like health care and
climate change. He had contemplated a run for president in 2008. “He loved
public service,” said his friend Tony Coelho, a former House Democratic
whip, “and he always looked at, was there an opportunity to get back in.”
<more>
Feb. 6, 2009 NY Times
Pelosi Quietly Lines Up Her Young Lieutenants - - With few openings on the leadership tree, Speaker Nancy Pelosi has
looked for creative ways to woo, cajole and reward members whom she needs to
be players on her team. Former House Majority Whip Tony Coelho said speculation increased since her
handpicked heir, Rahm Emanuel of Illinois (2003-09), former chairman of the
House Democratic Caucus, agreed to become Obama’s chief of staff. “His
departure has left a vacuum. It’s unclear who will fill it,” Coelho said.
Now, he said, Van Hollen heads a short list of members in their early 50s or
younger who could one day assume one of the four top elected leadership
posts and eventually become Speaker. Coelho said others include Debbie
Wasserman Schultz of Florida, 42, the new DCCC vice chairwoman, and Becerra,
50. Another well-positioned candidate is John B. Larson of Connecticut, 60,
who as caucus chairman is the fourth-ranking party leader.
<more>
Jan. 18, 2009 CQ Politics
Businesses put politics aside, take new president in stride - - Is big
business going blue? Not IBM blue, but politically blue, as Barack Obama
takes up residence in the White House and Democrats solidify their hold on
Congress. Absolutely not, says Tony Coelho, the former Democratic
congressman from California and House majority whip, who has sat on several
corporate boards including Tele-Communications Inc. before it was acquired
by AT&T. Business will adjust and cooperate with President-elect Obama just
as it did with President Clinton, but "business supports Republicans,"
Coelho says.<more>
Jan. 15, 2009 USA Today
Tony Coelho Joins the 3rd Annual ATIA Leadership
Forum on Accessibility as Keynote Speaker-- The Assistive Technology
Industry Association (ATIA) is proud to announce that Anthony "Tony" Coelho
will join the ATIA Leadership Forum on Accessibility, January 29 - 30, 2009
at the Caribe Royale Resort & Convention Center in Orlando, Florida as the
Keynote Speaker. Tony Coelho is a former U.S. Congressman from California
and was the primary author and sponsor of the American Disabilities Act. He
currently serves as the Chair Emeritus of the Board of the Epilepsy
Foundation. Mr. Coelho is highly regarded as a leader and driving force
behind disability legislation and a tireless advocate for disability rights.
His keynote address will discuss the recent passage of the ADA Amendments
Act and its impact on employment of persons with disabilities and other
areas. He will share his vision for the future and the potential for further
advancement of disability initiatives within the next presidential
administration.
<more>
Jan. 12, 2009 Assistive Technology Industry Association Press
Release
Coelho, Fraioli Say McAuliffe Is In - - Former Congressman Tony Coelho and Democratic fundraiser Michael Fraioli are
telling their contacts that Terry McAuliffe "is running for governor" of
Virginia and needs help raising money before the Dec. 31 campaign finance
reporting deadline. In an email, Coelho and Fraioli are directing people to
McAuliffe's website so they can make a contribution."Please excuse us for
the mass email," the two write. "As the subject line of this email
indicates, and we suspect you already know, our friend Terry McAuliffe is
running for governor of Virginia....forward this email with your own message
encouraging your friends to make a contribution to Terry's campaign. Please
make your contribution before December 31." The email suggests McAuliffe,
who had said he will wait until Jan. 7 before officially announcing whether
he would be a candidate, has begun ramping up his fundraising operation.
Coelho served in the House of Representatives from 1978 to 1989. In the late
1980s, he was the House Majority Whip, but resigned after his name surfaced
during the Savings and Loan scandal. Coelho was never charged with any
wrong-doing and later became chairman of Al Gore's 2000 presidential
campaign. Fraioli heads up a Democratic consulting and fundraising firm in
the District, Fraioli & Associates.
<more>
Dec. 24, 2008 Washington Post
Obama’s
Slam Dunk?
- - Despite Obama’s
lead in national polls, as high as six percentage points in an average of 10
surveys, the outcome of the election could change. If we have learned
anything from history, what a candidate does during the last days of a
campaign can carry incalculable weight. Ask President
Jimmy Carter about 1980. “He
needs to keep reassuring
people he can do the job,”
said Tony Coelho, the former House majority whip, who served
as general manager of Al Gore’s 2000 campaign. “He
does this with his demeanor, his calmness, by providing
a contrast with McCain, who’s changing what he’s
talking about
every other day, who doesn’t
seem to have a focus or message. He needs to keep pressing on home and
focus
on the need for change. If he does this, he’ll
win this
thing by a very big margin,” said Coelho. ”But he’s
also got to
be very careful that he doesn’t have people saying he’s
measuring drapes
in the Oval Office, or isn’t
working as hard. That could cause him problems at the
end. But he’s been so steady. He’s
been such a real workhorse
this whole race. I don’t
expect him
to make a mistake. He doesn’t
get rattled,
and he simply works hard.”
<more>
Oct. 30, 2008 Washington Independent
Behind McCain’s ACORN gambit: The fraud of voter
‘fraud’ - - John McCain’s attempt to magnify allegations of voter
registration fraud could mitigate the impact of a Barack Obama victory and
deter black Democrats from turning out to vote in future elections. Sen.
McCain, R-Ariz., and his allies have seized on the Association of Community
Organizations for Reform Now, ACORN, which has worked to register more than
1,000,000 lower-income and minority voters. Some of the registrations have
been faked and investigations are under way in some key states. While
Obama’s voter registration effort is a part of his presidential campaign and
entirely separate from ACORN’s, the McCain campaign and its surrogates have
continued to falsely link Obama to ACORN. ¡°The reason that it is [more
intense] is because Obama is black, that’s the difference,” former Rep. Tony
Coelho, D-Calif., said, adding that the attacks have longer-term
implications. “This is a good way of raising the race card without raising
it. If [Obama] loses, two things happen. [Republicans] still have the race
issue and then the black community becomes turned off” to electoral
politics, Coelho said.
<more>
Oct. 16, 2008 Colorado Independent
The Final Throw-Down. Can Obama Be Reagan
Tonight? - - Have we finally reached the end? Much has changed since
Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama debated last month in Mississippi — all
of it for the worse, as far as the country and the economy are concerned.
Now we have one more meeting, one more moment, with the old soldier, the
self-proclaimed steady hand, facing off against the great avatar of hope,
the man who has promised he can help this country rise above the ordinary
into the extraordinary. “Obama has to be careful,” said Tony Coelho, the
former House majority whip who served as general manager of Al Gore’s 2000
presidential campaign. “The race is his and, at this point, it’s still his
to lose. But there could be a signal statement he makes, or McCain makes,
that becomes the identifier of this campaign. It could be some comment that
rings true with people and is repeated with each headline. I think he has to
be sharp enough to not make that mistake. The McCain people are going to be
looking for that opportunity, and he needs to be able to come back if
something like that happens. He doesn’t need to too much,” Coelho said. “He
needs to continue to have people identify with his calmness, and not have
McCain rattle him. If he does that, he’s going to win.”
<more>
Oct. 15, 2008 Washington Independent
Smart as a Whip. To Get Results in the House,
They Crunch Numbers and Squeeze Colleagues - - The second time, at
week's end, they didn't even fight about it much. Order in the House of
Representatives had been restored, however, the party bosses and their whips
having regained their skill at Old Math -- otherwise known as head-counting.
"If you really are a good vote-counter, you don't let something come up that
you can't win, because the next time people are going to say, 'I don't know,
maybe he doesn't have the votes,' " said Tony Coelho, whose 1986-89 tenure
as Democrat majority whip earned him a rep as a fine vote-counter.
<more> Oct. 4, 2008 Washington Post
The Bailout’s Power Vacuum - - As congressional leaders scramble to resuscitate the $700-billion financial bailout plan that died a stunning death in the House this week, many historians and political experts ascribe the bill’s failure to a lack of political leadership in Washington. “It’s a crisis of leadership,” said former Rep. Tony Coelho (D-Cal.), a House majority whip for several years in the late 1980s. “The country’s in trouble, and they just didn’t rise up to get this done.” <more> Oct. 2, 2008 Washington Independent
Presidential Debate Preview: It's Obama's Debate to Lose, a Chance for
McCain- - “Does he come tonight as the law professor or the next door
neighbor?” Coelho said. “That’s going to be the key. If he comes to the
debate as the law professor — as Michael Dukakis did — he will lose the
debate. He’s smarter than hell; and he really understands what’s going on.
But sometimes he can come across as aloof, arrogant. There are a lot of
words people use for it — and he can’t come that way tonight. “Get out of
the textbooks,” Coelho said, ” Talk to me as a neighbor. Don’t go for the
brain. Go for the heart. How does he do that? It’s in his language. When
he’s asked a question, he doesn’t start analyzing. He gives a human
response, he shows his emotional side first and then the legal, policy side
second.”
<more>
Sept. 26, 2008 Washington Independent
Against Free Markets, Against Science? - -
ABSTRACT This study challenges the assumption that abstract "globalization"
forces are driving transformations in the relationships between states and
markets. Employing three cases of policy debate regarding the regulation of
agricultural biotechnology (ag-biotech), we examine the role of discourse in
the formation of neoliberal regulatory schemes. We show that one important
mechanism for the successful institutionalization of neoliberalism in the
area of ag-biotech has been the linking of neoliberal discourse with a
discourse of scientism. Many of the most vocal opponents of rBGH,
particularly in the debates in the mid-1980s, based their opposition to the
drug on socio-economic considerations. Concerns about the impacts on dairy
farmers were represented in Congress by Representatives Tony Coelho and
Steven Gunderson, both from large dairying areas (California and Wisconsin,
respectively). According to a report in the Washington Post, they made "no
secret of their intentions to force the Food and Drug Administration (FDA),
the Agriculture Department and the drug companies to jump through every
conceivable regulatory hoop before the growth hormone is marketed" (Sinclair
1986b). Reflecting concerns about the societal impacts of rBGH, the purpose
of the 1986 Congressional hearing was not to examine the safety or efficacy
of the product, but to look specifically at the socio-economic effects of
its commercialization.
<more> Sept. 2, 2008 Redorbit.com
When the Base Revolts. Can the Left Let Obama Take the Vital Center? - - It is, of course, conventional wisdom that he must. Those of us who chronicle politics understand that, in the primaries, a candidate needs to appeal to the steadfast party base, the loyalists who want to see their ideals reflected in you. But it is also a truism that, after a candidate has done just that, a move to the center is essential. That's where general elections are won. He must reassure them that he will not give up their big causes and run straight to the center, that he will retain the ideals that have embodied his primary campaign. Is this a genuine concern? Just ask Tony Coelho, the former House Majority whip who served as chairman of Al Gore's 2000 presidential campaign. He thinks that the liberal wing of the party yawned at the thought of Gore -- viewing him as a too much of a centrist, running straight to the middle. "I remind a lot of Democrats who didn't vote for Al Gore -- because he wasn't liberal enough -- that we got George Bush," Coelho said. "How did that help the liberal cause? Al Gore would not have gotten us into Iraq, and he wouldn't have appointed Supreme Court justices like John Alito and John Roberts. I am not one of those who sits back and says you're either 100 percent with us or you're against us. It doesn't make sense. Obama might be something you might not like to win in Pennsylvania or somewhere else. Governing is more important than purity. You've got to keep your ideals == but you have to be a realist." <more> Aug. 20, 2008 Washington Independent
Threat of Law: Strategy of 2008? - - Though
only days old, a liberal non-profit group aiming to hinder Republican
fund-raising this election cycle has already provoked a heated debate among
legal scholars and political experts over its tactics. Tony Coelho, the
former California congressman who served as chairman for Al Gore's 2000
presidential run, said there's little surprise that groups are attacking
from every possible front. "The whole idea of intimidating people in the
election process is nothing new," Coelho said. "It's part of the game."
Coelho also had some encouraging words for Matzzie: "As a Democrat," he
said, "I say go for it -- what the hell."
<more>
Aug. 18, 2008 Washington Independent
Obama’s story -
- Dole. Dukakis. Kerry. All these men, in running for public office seemed
to follow the foreshadow cast by the character Harvey Dent, who would later
become the ruthless Two-Face in "The Dark Knight," when he said, "You either
die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain." But
each of these men were not taken down by a single stroke as President Lyndon
B. Johnson did to Sen. Barry M .Goldwater with his "Daisy" ad. Instead their
stories were recast through a method that former House Majority whip Tony
Coelho, the ex-California congressman who served as chairman of Al Gore's
2000 presidential run, calls "drip, drip, drip." "You start to lay the
message and it just builds," Coelho said of the drip. "You do it by
attacking someone's strongest suit. Obama's celebrity, his popularity with
young people and a lot of independents is something they want to turn into a
negative. From their point of view, they were doing the drip. But when they
brought the women into it, they crossed the line. It was too cute by a half
-- and ended up being mocked everywhere. So, while it could have been
effective, it got national attention from the negative point of view with a
lot of people saying 'Here we go again.'"
<more>
Aug. 7, 2008 Washington Independent
Obama
as Closer? - - “He has problems that no candidate has ever had before,”
said former House Majority Whip Tony Coelho, who served as chairman for Al
Gore’s 2000 presidential run. “He’s the first person of color to be the
nominee of his party. He had to show he could be on the international stage
with foreign leaders and he did that. Now what he has to do is get back to
relating to regular people. Gore had to do it and never quite succeeded to
get there. “I tried a lot of things with Gore,” Coehlo said. “I tried to get
him to water-ski, because he was good at it. I tried to get him to play
pick-up basketball, but he wouldn’t do that because he thought he’d be
copying [former New Jersey Sen.] Bill Bradley. He played pool and he
wouldn’t do that in public either. These were all things that would make him
approachable to ordinary people -- and he just wouldn’t do them. That what
Obama has to do — make the public understand what he’s really like, and how
he relates to them.”
<more>
Aug. 1, 2008 Washington Independent
Coelho grad marshal for Chicago Disability Pride
Parade - - – Chicago 2016 announced its participation in the fifth
annual Disability Pride Parade in Chicago, coinciding with the inaugural
Disability Pride Day. Representatives and volunteers from the Olympic bid
committee as well as Paralympians will ride the Chicago 2016 float in the
parade and host a booth at the post-parade rally at Daley Plaza. The parade
kicks off at 11 AM at Plymouth and Van Buren and proceeds north on Dearborn
to Daley Plaza. This year’s parade will be led by Grand Marshal Tony Coelho,
author of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
<more>
July 27, 2008 Chicago 2016 Press Release
Alhurra Paid Former White House Aides, Washington
Journalists - - Alhurra, the U.S. government-funded Arabic news channel,
paid former Bush and Clinton administration officials, lobbyists and
high-profile Washington journalists tens of thousands of dollars in U.S.
taxpayer money to appear on the network as commentators, according to
interviews and a review of company records. Many of the guests who appeared
on the news programs were academics, authors and members of Washington
think-tanks. Alhurra also paid several former members of Congress. Democrat
Tony Coelho, a former California congressman, received $750 for two
appearances; Ron Klink, a former Democratic representative of Pennsylvania,
received $1,700, and former representative George Nethercutt, a Republican
from Washington State, received $1,250.
<more>
June 25, 2008 ProPublica.org
Employers and Disability Advocates Push for
Amendments to Landmark Americans with Disabilities Act - – This
afternoon, former Congressman Tony Coelho, U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue, LCCR Executive
Vice President Nancy Zirkin and autism advocate Ari Ne’eman announced the
formation of the Employer & Disability Alliance – a new collaborative effort
among some of America’s largest business associations and leading disability
and civil rights advocates to promote the ADA Amendments Act. “I always say
that I don’t know of any other group in America who wants to pay taxes –
it’s those of us with disabilities, because a job is our dignity and an
opportunity to participate in this great American dream,” said Coelho, the
primary author of the original ADA. “What the ADA Amendments Act does is
provide us the opportunity to work with the business community to get those
jobs we want.”
<more>
June 21, 2008 Americans with Disabilities Act Restoration Advocacy News
Collaboration Leads to Revised ADA Bill - -
Since becoming federal law in 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act has
had a major impact on the U.S. workplace. The problem is, whatever the ADA's
net effect has been on employment and the working disabled in general,
subsequent legal decisions have led to as much frustration as success. That
court-produced frustration, in turn, has caused both disabled advocates and
business leaders to seek out more consistent, fair ADA rules and
regulations. It was a rare chance for groups with frequently opposing views
to work together. On Wednesday, those groups came a step closer to resolving
any differences (and clarifying specific issues) on the ADA front, when two
key committees within the U.S. House of Representatives "marked-up" the ADA
Amendments Act of 2008. The House Judiciary committee approved the measure
on a 27-0 vote, and House Education and Labor Committee approved it by a 43
to 1 margin.
<more> June 19, 2008 Human Resource Executive Online
Employer-Endorsed Disability Bill Sails Through
Committees - - Legislation that would ensure a broad interpretation of a
law that bans discrimination against people with disabilities sailed through
two House committees on Wednesday, June 18, and could soon get a vote on the
House floor. The measure, which would amend the Americans With Disabilities
Act, passed the House Education and Labor Committee, 43-1, and the House
Judiciary Committee, 37-0. In a rare show of cooperation, both employer and
advocate groups support the bill. They hope strong approval by the full
House will generate momentum to push it through the Senate and get President
Bush to sign it this year. President George H.W. Bush enacted the original
ADA in 1990. “It’s about fairness in the workplace,” said former Rep. Tony
Coelho, the primary author of the original ADA and past chairman of the
board of directors of the Epilepsy Foundation. “A job is our dignity.”
<more> June 18, 2008 Workforce.com
Disabled Americans hope this is the one - -
This mornings House Education and Labor Committee’s passage of the
American’s with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 2008 brought wide praise
throughout interest groups across the political spectrum. Tony Coelho, who
was the primary author of the original Americans with Disabilities Act was
joined by Tom Donohue of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce as well as Nancy
Zirkin from the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights to sing the measures
praises on an afternoon conference call. One common theme amongst the newly
formed coalition of the business and disabilities communities was to see
that the original intent of the 1990 landmark legislation was carried
through. Zirkin believes that “narrow courts have chipped away the ADA
coverage” that was originally meant in the first piece of legislation.
<more>
June 18, 2008 Talk Radio News Service
Rep. Sam Farr Chief of Staff Rochelle Dornatt -
- Rochelle Dornatt recalls working to create the Americans with Disabilities
Act under former Rep. Tony Coelho (D-Calif.). Among the most difficult parts
of structuring the bill, she recalls, was convincing businesses they could
make money from people in the disabled community. Serendipitously, one
afternoon at a staff reunion picnic in 1993 at Coelho’s house in McLean,
Va., Dornatt was approached with a job offer from her present boss, Rep. Sam
Farr (D-Calif.). At the time, she was pursuing a job on President Bill
Clinton’s staff. “But they were taking so long in clearing people,” Dornatt
said. <more>
June 17, 2008 The Hill.com
NRA's
political clout is waning - - Eight years after a national debate over
gun control helped keep Democrat Al Gore out of the White House, the
National Rifle Assn. and its Republican allies are launching a new campaign
to defeat Barack Obama.
"Voters have proven election after election that this issue is one of their
first freedoms," NRA Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Wayne
LaPierre said in a recent interview. "When people feel uncertain, when
people feel unsafe, they run right back to the 2nd Amendment." In 2000, the
gun group converted that emotion into results. Tony Coelho, a former
California congressman who managed Gore's presidential campaign, is among
many analysts who think the NRA delivered the election for George W. Bush by
highlighting Gore's endorsement of tougher gun laws. "It was critical," he
said. Coelho noted that had more gun owners voted for Gore in West Virginia,
Tennessee or Arkansas -- all states targeted by the NRA -- he would have
been president.
<more> June 14, 2008 LA Times
Jets’ Faneca discusses life with epilepsy
- - Alan Faneca remembers waking up in the middle of the night, scared and
unsure of what was wrong with his body. He was 15 and in his freshman year
of high school, and his first epileptic seizure had just jolted him out of
his sleep on Christmas Eve. “It just felt like a nightmare,” the New York
Jets’ left guard recalled Wednesday. Faneca talks openly about the
condition, and has helped bring awareness to it by appearing at charity
events and benefit walks. “The mere fact that Alan is able and willing to
speak up about his epilepsy makes a huge difference to those of us who have
epilepsy,” former National Epilepsy Foundation chairman Tony Coelho said.
Coelho, who also lives with epilepsy, is a former congressman from
California and the primary author and sponsor of the Americans with
Disabilities Act. He has known Faneca for five years and they have worked
together in trying to eliminate the stigma attached to epilepsy. “There are
so many people whose families don’t want to acknowledge their epilepsy,”
Coelho said. “Alan has become a wonderful role model and spokesperson for
our cause. He’s been very open about it and never hid it. As a result of his
openness, he has impacted other players.”
<more> May 29, 2008 AP
The Epilepsy Foundation Sheds Light on Seizures
- - The Epilepsy Foundation today released important information about
epilepsy and seizure disorders to dispel prevalent myths in the wake of
recent news about Senator Edward Kennedy (D-Mass). "The good news is that
most people can recover from seizures fully and be able to return to their
normal daily functions and responsibilities without any difficulties," said
Eric R. Hargis, president and CEO of the Epilepsy Foundation. "Just like
Chief Justice John Roberts and former Congressman Tony Coelho, the primary
author of the Americans with Disabilities Act, did.
<more> May 20, 2008 Epilepsy Foundation Press Release
Dan Rather Reports to Provide Live Coverage of
the North Carolina and Indiana Primaries on HDNet - - As the drama of
this year's race for the Democratic presidential nomination unfolds, all
eyes are now focused on the upcoming primaries in North Carolina and
Indiana. This Tuesday, "Dan Rather Reports" will take place in front of a
live audience at the Newseum in Washington, D.C., providing full coverage
and analysis of this all-important night for the Democrats. In "Dan Rather
Reports on Politics: The North Carolina and Indiana Primaries," Rather will
be joined on the broadcast by former Congressman Tony Coelho (D-CA), veteran
campaign strategist Democrat Donald Fowler, Pollster Peter Hart, Media
Critic Tom Rosenstiel and Superdelegate Lauren Wolfe, President of the
College Democrats of America. "Dan Rather Reports on Politics: The North
Carolina and Indiana Primaries" will premiere live on HDNet on Tuesday, May
6 at 7:00 p.m. ET.
<more> May 6, 2008 HDNet Press Release
Coelho Lecture Webcast and Text Now Available
- - Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL), delivered a powerful speech about the
employment of people with disabilities and the future of the ADA at the
Fourth Annual Tony Coelho Lecture in Disability Employment Law & Policy.
National Center for Technology.
<more>
April 28, 2008 National Center for Technology Innovation
Obama Train Off the Tracks- - "There has been
a repeat of his inability to close and I think that is the story and the
press is so fixated on her having to get out rather than him having to win,”
said Tony Coelho, a former House majority whip and campaign manager for Al
Gore.
<more>
April 28, 2008 Politico
DAVID P. RUNDLE: Restore rights of the disabled- - In the House, former Rep. Tony Coelho, D-Calif., was a main backer.
Coelho has epilepsy and takes medications to keep it under control. Courts
have ruled that if a person has a condition such as epilepsy or diabetes
that is controlled by medication, the person is no longer considered
disabled under ADA and a business can deny the person employment or
services. Likewise, if a person is hard of hearing and uses hearing aids,
the person is no longer protected by the law.
<more>
April 24, 2008 The Wichita Eagle
Senator urges agencies, Congress to hire more
disabled employees - - The federal government must hire more people with
disabilities to meet its obligation as a model employer, said Sen. Richard
Durbin, D-Ill., in a Monday lecture at New York Law School. "We should show
employers by example why it makes good sense to hire and promote people with
disabilities," he told students and professors during the fourth annual Tony
Coelho Lecture in Disability Employment Law and Policy in New York.
<more>
April 15, 2008 GovExec.com
Casting Off the Stigma of Epilepsy
- - One of the greatest people I know
has dealt with stigma from his parents – he survived and is a champion
today. Tony Coelho, a former Congressman, is the author of the Americans
with Disabilities Act. He is not only a successful business man, he is a
Civil Rights hero. He is one of the most respected and quoted political
analysts in the United States. He is also a person with epilepsy. I met Tony
when he was the Chairman of the President’s Committee on Employment of
People with Disabilities during the Clinton Administration. I saw this great
man who was not afraid to discuss his epilepsy. He impacted my life.
<more> April 8, 2008 The Cutting Edge
A
Penn-Less Pennsylvania For Clinton - - “Penn will always be linked to
one strategic approach and one strategic approach only for Hillary’s
campaign,” said Tony Coelho, former campaign manager for Al Gore in 2000.
“And that was inevitability. Penn cast Hillary as inevitable.
<more>
April 7, 2008 FoxNews.com
The Loneliest Call - - "Nobody can make the
decision except you," says Tony Coelho, who managed the early portion of
Vice President Al Gore's campaign in 2000 and was a confidant to Rep.
Richard Gephardt during his 1988 run. "And you have to make the decision in
a way that you don't second guess yourself the rest of your life."
<more> April 6,2008 Washington Post
United States Senator Dick Durbin to Speak about
Disability Legislation at New York Law School, April 14 - - United
States Senator Richard Durbin, national co-chair of Senator Barack Obama's
presidential campaign, will deliver the Fourth Annual Tony Coelho Lecture in
Disability Employment Law & Policy on Monday, April 14, 2008 at New York Law
School, from 8:30 to 11 a.m. His speech will focus on disabilities
legislation in the upcoming congressional term.
<more>
April 4, 2008 PR Web
The
ADA Restoration Act and Restoring Freedom for Many - - The ADA has been
weakened over the past several years by Supreme Court rulings that do not
make sense. The ultimate irony in all of this is that the Tony Coelho,
former Democratic Whip in Congress, is the author of the Americans with
Disabilities Act and is a person living with epilepsy. I do not think Tony
wanted to exclude himself when he authored the ADA. That is ludicrous. Tony
Coelho never stops. He has been working for years and years to help move
forward the ADA Restoration Act---legislation that would address this
weakness in the ADA. At last year's National Epilepsy board meeting, Tony
promised the board that he would work on getting this accomplished.
<more> March 31, 2008 The Cutting Edge
Gore Invests $35 Million for Hedge Funds With
EBay Billionaire - - Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore left the White
House seven years ago with less than $2 million in assets, including a
Virginia home and the family farm in Tennessee. Now he's making enough to
put $35 million in hedge funds and other private partnerships. ``Gore got a
lot of support from Silicon Valley when he ran for president because they
knew the Internet was one of his primary concerns,'' said Tony Coelho, a
former congressman and investment banker who served as chairman of Gore's
2000 campaign. ``It's very legit that these people would pursue him'' after
he left office, Coelho said, adding that Gore received Google and Apple
stock options before their shares ``went into the stratosphere.''
<more> March 8, 2008 Bloomberg.com
Media Event:
Why the US Should Ratify International Disability Rights Treaty - -
The new international disability rights treaty, called the Convention on the
Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), should matter to all Deaf people
around the world. Why? Because countries that sign, ratify, then implement
the CRPD will be legally binding themselves to pass a wide range of laws
that protect the human rights of all people with disabilities–and Deaf,
deaf, and hard of hearing people too. It also legally obliges them to
abolish laws that violate the human rights of deaf and disabled people. 1:30
Keynote Presentation: The Honorable Tony Coelho
<more>
March 5, 2008
Coelho replaced as
co-chair of GW Council on American Politics - - The Graduate School of
Political Management at The George Washington University announced today
that Jack N. Gerard and Howard Paster have agreed to become the new
co-chairs of its principal advisory board, the GW Council on American
Politics. Gerard and Paster replace Frank
Fahrenkopf and Tony Coelho, who served as co-chairs since the council's
inception in 1998 and will continue as members.
<more>
Feb. 26, 2008 GW Press Release
Front Row: Campaign nears a crucial point - -
Obama’s post-Super Tuesday landslides are a sign of “acceptance” among
rank-and-file Democratic voters, says Tony Coelho, who managed Al Gore’s
2000 presidential campaign for a time and gave $2,300 to Clinton’s campaign,
the maximum allowed. “He’s very acceptable to a broader base of people, and
that’s what’s hurting her.”
<more>
Feb. 20, 2008 Baltimore Sun
Candidates contending with the Obama factor - - Signaling his new status
as the frontrunner in the New Hampshire Democratic primary, Sen. Barack
Obama has become a factor within the Republican primary as some GOP
candidates use him as a foil to attack their opponents and to unite their
own party.But Republicans could be talking about Obama for another reason:
They have leveled political attacks against former President Bill Clinton
and Sen. Clinton to motivate GOP loyalists. If she fails to win the
nomination, Obama could be a less inviting target. "The Republican Party was
juiced up for Sen. Hillary Clinton because she is the big uniter," said Tony
Coelho, a former congressman who managed Vice President Al Gore's
presidential campaign in 2000. "Now they are trying to make him the uniter
for their party."
<more> Jan. 7, 2008 Kennebec Journal
Californians call shots, set agenda in the 110th
- - When they captured control of the House last year, Speaker Nancy
Pelosi and other California Democrats redirected the geographic balance of
political influence to their own state from the once-dominant South. The
Southern drawls and Texas twangs of lawmakers like former majority leaders
and Texas Republicans Tom DeLay and Dick Armey have given way to California
lilts, as the 54-member California delegation — the largest in Congress —
works to change policy and how Washington talks about issues. DeLay, Armey
and ex-House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) are all out of office. Illegal
aliens are referred to as undocumented workers by Pelosi and some of her
colleagues; corn, cotton and wheat now compete with specialty crops —
fruits, nuts and vegetables — for attention in the farm bill; and oil
subsidies and drilling have taken a backseat to “green jobs” and the
“greening of the Capitol.” Californians have “infiltrated all the different
power centers in the House so they heavily influence the dialogue,” former
Democratic Whip Tony Coelho (Calif.) said. <more>
Dec. 13, 2007 The Hill
Setting the Tone - - Democratic and
Republican Insiders alike profess a willingness to compromise and generally
agree that cooperation would be good for the country and would perhaps even
be in their political best interest. But the majority of both parties'
members are pessimistic that the hyperpartisanship that characterizes
Washington will diminish much in the next several years. "The problem that
we have today is that the leaders have the problem of having to cater to the
extremes of their caucuses. And that prevents them from reaching compromises
with the other party," says former House Democratic Whip Tony Coelho. For
the capital's movers and shakers, putting aside the rancorous partisan
battles that have dominated Washington and turning to cooperation and
compromise would not be easy. "Because of the extreme hostility over the
past decade, that has made it hard for any party leader to even try to
appear to be moving to the other side," Coelho notes. "The question is, how
do you get the party leaders to let loose of the past and try to govern in
some sort of compromising way to get the country moving in the way that
people want?"
<more>
Dec. 1, 2007 National Journal
Disabled war veteran's activism forges onto film
- - His story was about to be told up on the big screen, but as Richard
Pimentel stood to thank his friends and fellow activists for coming to this
preview screening in his hometown, he realized his legacy was all around
him. There were people in wheelchairs who, a scant 15 years ago, wouldn't
have had ramps to enter the theater. There were also people with hearing
disabilities who wouldn't have had devices providing special amplification,
and blind people wouldn't have been able to listen to an audio description
of the Pimentel biopic Music Within. "None of that would have existed were
it not for the Americans With Disability Act (ADA)," says Pimentel, 59, who
lost most of his hearing in an explosion during his service in the Army
during the Vietnam War. "What we've accomplished is amazing." "It's the
first movie about the ADA movement, our civil rights movement," says former
U.S. representative Tony Coelho, D-Calif., who authored the civil rights law
that passed in 1990 and became effective in 1992 to ban discrimination based
on disability. "Rich was one of those people who was active and engaged, and
his story is like a lot of others," says Coelho. "The movie isn't a story
about Rich so much as Rich symbolizes hundreds of others like him who helped
get the ADA adopted."
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Nov. 7, 2007 USA Today