News & Advocacy

State Update: Advocacy Tips: Preparing to Engage an Elected Official

posted: May 1, 2016

As the OAR provides opportunities for advocacy, it is important that the individual advocate prepare for future engagement with policymakers. To help, the OAR government relations team has provided some helpful advocacy tips to consider:

• DO YOUR HOMEWORK! Know exactly what you want to say and carefully review your messages.
• If possible, compile information about the impact of specific healthcare issues on the elected officials district or state.
• DO NOT compile a long list of statistics: your elected officials will not remember them and they will lose their impact.
• Prepare a few dramatic numbers or anecdotes to illustrate your points.
• To encourage policymakers to support a specific issue effecting rheumatology, present materials that clearly articulate your position. This type of material is readily available through the OAR website.
• Know the counter-arguments and be ready to respectfully answer any questions or disagreements.

Advocacy Opportunity

Members of the International Society for Clinical Densitometry (ICSD) will be meeting with members of congress to discuss restoring more adequate reimbursement for DXA. Please help in this effort by emailing your Congressman and urge their co-sponsorship of the Increasing Access to Osteoporosis Testing for Medicare Beneficiaries Act of 2015.

Take action by visiting The International Society for Clinical Densitometry.

As always, OAR legislative staff will continue to monitor all relevant legislation and will update OAR membership as required.