Running head: POLICY MAKER LETTER 1

Letter to a Policy Maker

Allison Rogers

King University
POLICY MAKER LETTER 2

01-16-2017

The Honorable Mark R. Warner

475 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Senator Warner,

I am a Registered Nurse, currently pursuing my Master of Science degree in Nursing with a

concentration in Family Nurse Practitioner. I presently serve patients primarily residing in the
Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee area. As a future healthcare provider, I am
concerned with the patient population of retired coal miners and their widows, which is a large
number of persons residing in my area. A current issue with these patients concerns the
following bill, H. R. 179: Miners Protection Act of 2017, reviewed by the House of
Representatives on January 03, 2017.

Mining has been prominent in this area for some time. Which means many patients seeking
healthcare in this area will be of this background. Coalworker's pneumoconiosis, better known
as black lung, is prominent among many that have worked in and around coal. This disease has
the potential to become very costly, as it is not a curable disease.

My grandfather spent a good part of his adult life, 23 years, working in the coal mining industry
in order to support his wife and children. Although following all proper regulations and safety
regimens, repeatedly being exposed to coal dust and harsh chemicals, eventually took a toll on
his health. He suffered over a course of 15 years battling this disease. He spent many sleepless
nights from the frightening feeling of not being able to catch his breath. The movement of cool
air would give him partial relief of this distressing feeling. Because of this, he spent many nights
on his front porch in an attempt for the fresh breeze to give him a little relief. Toward the end of
his battle with this horrible disease, he underwent many emergency room visits, as well as
hospital stays, which became very costly.

United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) supplied many of these workers with insurance and
pension through the UMWA Health and Retirement Funds. Unfortunately, due to the economy
there has been a significant loss of funding and investment assets over the past few years.
Therefore, the retirees and spouses were recently notified that the Funds were no longer going to
be able to accommodate the promise made to many in 1974 as declared in the United Mine
Workers of America Pension Plan (UMWA Health and Retirement Funds, 2014).
POLICY MAKER LETTER 3

Supporting this bill will allow for the amendment of the Surface Mining Control and
Reclamation act of 1977 to transfer certain funds to the Multiemployer Health Benefit Plan and
the 1974 United Mine Workers of America Pension Plan. This will in turn help benefit and
support the retired miners in our area, as well as their spouses, to receive assistance from the
pension they worked so hard and ultimately sacrificed their health to have (Surface Mining
Control and Reclamation Act of 1977, 2012).

As one of your constituents, I urge you to support this bill in order to help the citizens that have
served and worked so hard in my area.

Thank you for your public service.

Sincerely,

Allison D. Rogers
579 Holcomb Hollow Road
Big Stone Gap, VA 24219
(423) 579-6710
adrogers@student.king.edu
POLICY MAKER LETTER 4

References

Miners Protection Act of 2017, H.R. 179, 115th Congress (2017). Retrieved from:

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/115/hr179/text

Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977, Pub. L. 95-87 (2012). Retrieved from:

https://www.osmre.gov/lrg/docs/SMCRA.pdf

United Mine Workers of America Health and Retirement Funds [Internet] (2014). UMWA 1974

pension plan. Retrieved from: http://www.umwafunds.org/AboutUs/Pages/UMWA-

1974-Pension-Plan.aspx