Your advocacy makes our policy work possible . Learn more about the latest policy activities and get involved at michaeljfox . org / advocacy .
Spring / Summer 2023 | Policy 17
Parkinson ’ s community advocates have been playing a critical role in advancing policy measures in Washington , D . C .
On a national level , the Parkinson ’ s community rallied together an impressive effort to support the National Plan to End Parkinson ’ s Act .
solely devoted to ending this disease . Since the bill ’ s introduction in July 2022 , more than 19,000 advocates sent 40,000 messages encouraging 70 representatives and 16 senators in Congress to co-sponsor the bill . The bill is now positioned with incredible strength for re-introduction in the 118th Congress this year .
+ MJFF has long invested in both research and policy aimed at eliminating environmental triggers of Parkinson ’ s , including paraquat — a herbicide thought to increase disease risk by 100 to 500 percent . After years of advocacy , including amassing more than 100,000 community signatures on a petition , an important breakthrough was achieved : the Environmental Protection Agency agreed to reconsider the evidence that paraquat causes brain damage . This could lead to protective regulations and even a ban of this toxic chemical in the U . S .
Your advocacy makes our policy work possible . Learn more about the latest policy activities and get involved at michaeljfox . org / advocacy .