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Dear Dan Murray and LIstfriends, Wow!! Our "voting power" as you calculate it so clearly, is HUGE, Dan. How useful it is to think about possible numbers, on the eve of our P.A.N. Public Policy Forum in Washington, D.C., next week. Below, I am presenting for discussion what I think is a realistic way to take Dan's 10 Million Americans in our Voting Block, and bring this potential "Voting Power" up to perhaps 20 MILLION voters. I wonder what Listmembers think about this way of counting our "numbers?" DOUBLING our "VOTING BLOCK" count to 20 MILLION VOTERS! Our "Voting Power" doubles, from 10 to 20 million, if you take the 10 million voters calculated by Dan's formula, of 6 to 7 persons closely affected by the 1.5 million DIAGNOSED PWP's, and add in both UNDIAGNOSED PWP's, who are slightly symptomatic, such as older folks in whom some "shaking" or "tremor" or "palsy" is NOT recognized for what it is (Parkinson's), and add also, any totally PRE-SYMPTOMATIC PWP's--which a still-to-be-developed blood test or genetic screening test would reveal (another reason for funding the Udall Bill), including mostly children, and younger to middle-aged adults. If there are, perhaps, a minimum total estimate of 1.5 million PWP's in these two further categories (UNDIAGNOSED PWP's and PRE-SYMPTOMATIC PWP's), by Dan's very reasonable way of counting, we could now add another 10 million voters to our numbers. Now 20 Million is our potential "Voting Block." When you REALLY REALLY think about it, we have a HUGE constituency. Not even mentioning the allies to our voting block-- like health care workers, ranging from home-care attendants to Parkinson's specialists; counsellors, special service providers, and so on, ultimately our voting block is probably 30 or more million Americans. And that is 1 out of 10 Americans! Sincerely, Ivan ^^^^^^WARM GREETINGS FROM^^^^^^^^^^ Ivan Suzman 48/11 [log in to unmask] Portland, Maine land of lighthouses 76 deg. F sunny and warm *********************************************************** On Wed, 10 Jun 1998 06:03:58 PDT "Murray,Dan M" <[log in to unmask]> writes: >" .... from where I'm standing, there are not enough PWP in the USA > to force Congress to do the right thing [fund Udall] ...." > >I've always thought that the "voting power" around PD is much larger > than the estimated 1.5M diagnosed PWP. Let'sdo an estimate -- say > that for every PWP there are another 6-7 who are also directly > affected - spouses, CG's, children, grandchildren, parents, >relatives, > friends.... Consequently, it would seem to me that the effective vote > power could be in the 10M range. >