The Northern Virginia
CFS/FMS
Support Group

GROUP NEWS

 SELECTIONS FROM OUR EMAILS AND NEWSLETTERS

April 2000

Patient Assistance Program - Asthma & Allergy

Maryland-Washington Asthma & Allergy Foundation Chapter offers a patient assistance program to help with .... transportation, medication, supplies, equipment and tests directly related to the patient's asthma and/or allergic condition.  Eligibility is based on factors such as income and household size.  "Patient Assistance: Provides one -time aid to patients with a demonstrated need. Typical assistance includes emergency transportation or equipment." For more information, to receive an application, call (800) 727-9333 or (410) 653-2880.

Updated 04/06.

The National Chronic Pain Outreach Association (NCPOA)
Health Care Professional Referrals

Health care professional referrals ... are available through The National Chronic Pain Outreach Assoc.. It acts as a information clearing house and can provide referrals to health care professionals who specialize in treating chronic pain.  For more info., contact NCPOA at ....

4/06 UPDATE: NCPOA website/phones no longer working. 
Found this:
Laura S. Diallo, Ph.D
I’m a licensed psychologist who offers online counseling via email and chat sessions. In 1986, I was hired as the NCPOA Executive Director and later was hired as the Managing Editor of the association’s quarterly newsletter, Lifeline.  For the next 10 years, under my former name, Laura S. Hitchcock, Ph.D., I was the Executive Director and Managing Editor at NCPOA while at the same time, I maintained a part-time private psychotherapy practice.

Housing Information for the Disabled

You should know that federal law protects those with physical or mental disabilities from housing discrimination.  To find out how the law applies to different situations, the Bazelton Center for Mental Health Law (202-467-5730) has produced a PDF booklet titled "What Fair Housing Means for People with Disabilities." (Updated May 2003.) For a paper copy, send a check for $4.00 plus $2.00 shipping to:

    Publications Desk, Bazelton Center
    1101 15th Street NW Suite 1212
    Washington, DC 20005

Updated 04/06:  Publications Index. A related Information Sheet:
Allocating the Burden of Proof in Disability Cases Under the Fair Housing Act (PDF)

Moms In Touch

Network started for mothers with CFS. Kathy Herman started "Moms in Touch" to provide a network for mothers with CFIDS. If you are raising children while living with CFIDS or considering starting a family and want to exchange information with other mothers
with CFIDS, call 440/729-6168 for more information. You may also send a self-addressed stamped envelope to: Moms in Touch, PO Box 124, Chesterland, OH 44026.

Prescription Drug Patient Assistance Programs

A Directory of Prescription Drug Patient Assistance Programs (US) is available online at:
https://www.pparx.org/Intro.php

Link updated 04/06.

Registry For Clinical Research Trials

The U.S. National Library of Medicine has a new registry for clinical research trials.   http://clinicaltrials.gov

CFIDS Emergency Relief Services

C-FIDSers - CFIDS Emergency Relief Services - has recently updated their web site. The mission of C-FIDsers is "to alleviate the suffering from financial emergencies primarily among people with CFIDS, who, having no recourse otherwise, would have to endure hunger, homelessness, and medical deprivation. To find out more, see:
http://www.cfidsers.org/

Link still works, 2006!

Montgomery County MD Assisted Housing

For the first time in three years, Montgomery County will open its waiting list for general population Section 8 housing.  Applications will be taken for a limited time beginning in June. Also, for the first time in eight years, applications will be taken for a limited time beginning in April for elderly and/or disabled Section 8 housing. For more info, call Montgomery County Information and Referral at 240-777-1000.

Research on Orthostatic Intolerance (OI)

"Orthostatic Intolerance and Tachycardia Associated with Norepinephrine-Transporter Deficiency" - The New England Journal ofMedicine - February 24, 2000 - Vol. 342, No. 8. For the abstract, see:
http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/short/342/8/541

For more  information about the research at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, see:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2000/02/000228080712.htm

Link update 04/06.

New Book by Patarca-Montero about CFS Research

"Chronic Fatigue Syndrome - Advances in Epidemiologic, Clinical, and Basic Science Research" - Edited by Roberto Patarca-Montero, MD, PhD E.M. Papper Laboratory of Clinical Immunology, University of Miami School of Medicine, Miami, Florida - Haworth Press - 274 pp. with  Index. 1999. $90 hard (ISBN: 0-7890-0697-9);  $48 soft (ISBN: 0-7890-0821-1).  To order, go to:
Haworth Press Inc for this Book or call 1-800-HAWORTH or go to Amazon.  Updated 04/06.

Transcript of March 26 Chat with Dave Berg of Hemex

The complete transcript of the March 26, 2000 CFIDS Townhall chat with David Berg, Director of HEMEX Labs, is available online at....  No longer available. 04/06.

EPA Zip Code Search of Environmental Conditions

The EPA website offers an incredible online tool for conducting a zip code
search of polluting facilities and environmental conditions. See:
http://www.epa.gov/epahome/comm.htm .

CSPI Reviews of Multivitamins and Stevia

The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), a Washington-based consumer group, has conducted a review of hundreds of multivitamin products and compiled a list of recommendations based on content and price. For more details, see: http://www.cspinet.org/nah/4_00/pickamulti.htm . 

The CSPI site also has an interesting article that discusses some concerns about the
sweetener stevia; it's at: http://www.cspinet.org/new/stevia.html .

Verified Internet Pharmacy Practice Sites

The National Association of Pharmacy Boards operates a Verified Internet Pharmacy Practice Sites program, under which a VIPPS seal is issued to Web pharmacies that meet certain quality standards. 5 sites have earned the seal so far: www.cvs.com; www.drugstore.com; www.familymeds.com; www.merck-medco.com and www.planetRx.com. Fore more information, see: http://www.nabp.net/vipps/consumer/faq.asp .

ConsumerLab.com Testing of Supplements

Consumerlab.com, an online independent group that tests supplements sold in
the U.S., recently tested 13 brands of a popular herbal product SAMe, and
found that only 7 had contents in keeping with the label. See:
http://www.consumerlab.com/results/same.html . Consumerlab's goal is to
independently test most popular brands of dietary supplements sold in the
U.S. by the end of 2000. Results are also available now for glucosamine &
chondroitin (http://www.consumerlab.com/results/gluco.html) and ginkgo
biloba (http://www.consumerlab.com/results/ginkgobiloba.html).

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