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Hi Barb and List, The 3500 PWP's estimate is from the APDA, and from my State Senator's research with the APDA. Add to the 3500 PWP's approximately 6 family or paid caregivers for each PWP. That is 3500 x 6 , or 21,000 caregivers per Congressional district. Add 3500 and 21,000, and you get 24,500 people per Congressional District. So there it is. WE seem to have approximately 25,000 persons DIRECTLY AFFECTED BY PARKINSON'S ON A DAILY BASIS in each Cong. District. There are 435 Districts in the United States. 24,500 people x 435 = 10,657,500 persons in the USA affected EVERY DAY by Parkinson's Disease!! The 3500 per district is derived form the cautious (UNDER-) estimate of 1.5 million PWP's in the USA that both the NPF and the APDA use currently.. If the REAL figure, including not-yet-diagnosed PWP's, and those in denial and therefore not seeking treatment, is closer to 3 million, the 10,657,500 people might be more truly something like 20,000,000 affected DAILY in the USA. 10,000,000 is a HUGE number of people. So, let's start acting like the politicians are RESPONSIBLE to help us--and be more ASSERTIVE. Barb, is how I derived the numbers I use--and I feel they are NOT an overestimate. Thanks for asking about the numbers I use and how I figured them out. Comments, or ideas on how to translate these numbers, and potential VOTES, into POLITICAL POWER, anyone? Ivan "the gadfly" P.S. I like the way you're thinking, too!! ^^^^^^WARM GREETINGS FROM^^^^^^^^^^ Ivan Suzman 48/11 [log in to unmask] Portland, Maine land of lighthouses 63 deg. Fexpecting 90 deg. today *********************************************************** On Tue, 30 Jun 1998 07:38:59 EDT Barbara Brock <[log in to unmask]> writes: >Ivan, >In our community, there might be even more than 3500 PD people as we >are near >a large city and in FL and AZ and places with a warmer climate where >folks >like to retire, even more. What are you doing? Are you dividing the >estimated # of PWP by the number of congressional districts or what? >Interesting idea, tho the demographics of where folks tend to live >might be a >problem. I love that you are always thinking, dear friend and a much >better >thinker in the morning than I am! >Barb Brock >