Legislative Advocacy 101

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Legislative Advocacy 101

• By Brenda Ritson MD, Emily Rothbaum MD, Meg
  Sullivan MD, Dodi Meyer MD
• María Cecilia Mosquera MD

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Outline

• History of Curriculum
• Goals
• Intro to Leg Advocacy
• YOUR Responsibilities
• Resources

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History

• Fall 2007
• Comm Peds Residents
• Brenda Ritson, Emily Rothbaum, and Meg Sullivan
• Helped faculty revise 2nd Yr Comm Peds block
  Legislative Advocacy component
• 5 Session Curriculum developed

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Objectives

• To teach Residents HOW to effectively develop and
  dissipate an advocacy message.
• To increase resident and faculty AWARENESS of
  advocacy issues and opportunities.

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Goals

• Expose residents to current legislative efforts,
  issues, and needs surrounding children's health.
• Teach techniques for researching current
  legislative issues that pertain to childrens
  health .
• Provide a forum for residents to share their work
  on current issues, legislation, and advocacy
  efforts with medical students, residents, and
  attendings.

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Overarching Goals

• To foster awareness about legislative advocacy
  among residents and the CHONY community.
• WHILE
• Empowering CHONY pediatricians to be active
  advocates for childrens health issues, both now
  and in the future.

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Legislative Advocacy 101
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What is Advocacy?

• Act of pleading for, supporting or
  recommending Websters Dictionary.
• From the Latin advocare to call to ones aid

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What is Advocacy to US?

• An attitude, plan of action and behavior that
  have as specific goal(s) the improvement of the
  physical, emotional, or environmental condition
  of an individual child or adolescent, family or
  their community. Dyson Initiative definition

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The Three As of Advocacy

• Awareness
• Your own, friends, family, colleagues,
  legislators.
• Advancement
• By getting involved, you can help advance a
  movement or effect a policy change.
• Action
• Make contacts, write letters, call or visit your
  elected officials, support an organization.

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Why Should WE Be Advocates?

• Children cant advocate for themselves
• We have a unique position to see problems and
  understand their implications
• The problems matter
• We have respect and credibility

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Why Should We Be LEGISLATIVE Advocates?

• You may hate politics, but you cant ignore the
  consequences of politics especially for
  children who cant speak for themselves.

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Examples of Leg. Advocacy

• Mandating window bars in apartments with children
  (NYC)
• Helmet Laws (State)
• S-CHIP (Federal)

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The Legislative Process

• Sloooooooooow
• Varies for different Legislative bodies
• Know when your voice will be heard
• Proposal of a bill
• Public Hearings on the issue
• Lobbying individual legislators
• And Intervene!

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How does a Bill become a Law?

• http//www.votesmart.org/resource_govt101_02.php
• http//www.legis.state.wv.us/Educational/Bill_Beco
  mes_Law/Bill_Becomes_Law.cfm
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vmEJL2Uuv-oQ (video)

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Who are your Representatives?
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Summary of This Block
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Block Responsibilities

• I Advocacy 101 with Attending
• Choose Advocacy Hot Topic
• II SCHIP Case Study
• III Research Hot Topic
• IV Create Hot Topic Presentation
• V Present Hot Topic
• Optional Media/Spread the Word

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Session I

• Advocacy 101
• Today
• Intro to the Legislative Process
• Pick your Hot Topic

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Session II

• SCHIP Case Study
• Documents/PPT provided to you
• Compose a letter to your legislator
• Why you think SCHIP reauthorization and/or
  expansion is a priority for pediatricians and
  legislators
• Note Only if you agree
• Goals are to learn
• What is SCHIP? What is reauthorization? etc.

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Session III

• Research your Hot Topic
• Define the problem with a population perspective
• Who will be affected? How severe are the effects?
• Who are the stakeholders?
• Review recent history
• Learn about current controversies/events
• Find federal and state policies under
  consideration or debate
• Develop your own stance on the issue

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Session IV

• Create your Hot Topic Presentation
• Powerpoint?
• Samples available

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Session V

• Present your Hot Topic
• Goals
• Educate others about your issue and
• Motivate their participation in advocacy
• Presentation (Powerpoint?)
• 15 to 20 minutes
• Noon conference at the end of the block
• Theres a guide to help you along ?

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Optional

• 10-15 minutes
• Start
• Letter writing campaign,
• Petition signing, or
• Post an invitation to an upcoming policy briefing
  meeting or other advocacy activity

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Extras

• VOTE!
• Find out who your Legislators are.
• Call them in support/against a bill.
• Write a Letter to the Editor
• Write an Op-Ed
• Lobby visits to the State Assembly with Violet
  Moss
• Participate in Lobby Day or Call to Action
  Phone call

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How to Choose your Hot Topic?
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Sample Presentations Given

• The New York State Healthy Schools Act What is
  it? How can we support it?
• Barriers to Renewing SCHIP Doesnt anyone care
  about kids anymore?
• New NYC School Policies about MRSA Infections
  Science or Scaredy-Cats?
• Universal Health Care Proposals from the
  Presidential Candidates What do they really
  mean? What will it mean for doctors?

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Sample Other Hot Topics

• Obesity
• Vending Machines
• Trans Fat
• School Meals
• Skater Helmets
• Plan B

• CMS Regulations
• SCHIP Reauthorization
• MediKids
• Title VII Health Professions Programs
• Reducing Resident Funding

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Resources

• www.communityped.org
• www.aap.org/advocacy.html
• www.kff.org
• http//capwiz.com/nycac/home/
• http//www.familiesusa.org/resources/action-center
  /
• http//familiesusa.org/tell-us-your-story.html

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Summary

• Its easy to be an advocate.

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Your Tasks

• Learn!
• Pick a Hot Topic and Research it
• E-mail it to me by Monday
• Write a Letter to your Rep
• Give a Noon Presentation
• Become an Advocate!

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Questions?
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The End