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AHPN NEWS: Issue 5 now available
The Spring 2009 issue of the AHPN newsletter with policy updates, links and resources is available in PDF format. Previous issues are available at the bottom of the page at this link.Action Alert: Member Advocates Weigh in on Health Reform
An ACSM Action Alert went out to 2254 subscribed Advocates, asking them to send messages to President Obama, Vice President Biden, and their state’s U.S. Senators and the Representative from their district. Advocates can quickly send a standard message or edit it as they prefer. ACSM is building a network of Advocates, with a goal of having in each of the 435 U.S. Congressional districts a Key Contact to serve as a liaison with that district’s Member of Congress. Key Contacts also monitor issues in their states and help recruit and engage Advocates. ACSM policy staff can provide background materials, talking points, training and other resources.
For more information on ACSM’s policy program, click HERE.
Sending the Media a Message about Prevention
Look for an op-ed letter or featured column in your local newspaper stressing the effectiveness and cost savings of healthy lifestyles. In a recent letter to editors nationwide, Robert Sallis, M.D., FACSM, clarifies that prevention means more than expensive diagnostic tests and should include a healthy dose of physical activity. Sallis wrote in his capacity as a clinical physician and as chair of the Exercise is MedicineTM Task Force.
Click here to read Dr. Sallis’ letter. Please consider adapting it to send to your local newspaper as a reader/expert.
Update: National Physical Activity Plan Conference
More than 250 participants met July 1-2 in Washington, D.C. to work toward development of America’s first National Physical Activity Plan. An ACSM news release quoted Dr. Howard Koh in his first speech as assistant secretary for health of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Speaking at the Conference, Dr. Koh said “In many ways, physical activity is a prime example of prevention at its very best.” He also noted that HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius “cares deeply about prevention.”
Koh was introduced by Dr. David Satcher, a former U.S. Surgeon General (1998-2002) who shares Koh’s deep commitment to physical activity. MORE
Online Advocacy Resources Abound
Many organizations maintain robust advocacy sites with tips, background material and other resources that can be useful to those advocating for physical activity and exercise.
Below are some resources relating to advocacy for science and health:
Advocacy Resources Online
Following is a sampling of the many online sources of information on health-related public policy. Please suggest additional links by e-mailing them to policy@acsm.org.
American College of Sports Medicine
Founding organization of the Activity & Health Policy Network. Look under Influence tab for updates and links to advocacy sites (including AHPN).
American Academy of Pediatrics
http://www.aap.org/advocacy.html
American Diabetes Association
http://www.diabetes.org/advocacy-and-legalresources/advocacy.jsp
American Heart Association
http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=2945
American Hospital Association
http://www.aha.org/aha/advocacy/index.html
American Medical Association
http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/advocacy/current-topics-advocacy.shtml
American Public Health Association
California Center for Public Health Advocacy
http://www.publichealthadvocacy.org/
A nonpartisan nonprofit organization that raises awareness about critical public health issues and mobilizes communities to promote the establishment of effective state and local health policies.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
A part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, CDC is the primary Federal agency for conducting and supporting public health activities in the United States.
The Commonwealth Fund
http://www.commonwealthfund.org/
The Commonwealth Fund is a private foundation that aims to promote a high performing health care system that achieves better access, improved quality, and greater efficiency, particularly for society’s most vulnerable, including low-income people, the uninsured, minority Americans, young children, and elderly adults.
FASEB
The Federation of American Societies of Experimental Biology (FASEB) offers an impressive arsenal:
http://opa.faseb.org (FASEB Office of Public Affairs)
http://opa.faseb.org/pages/Advocacy/ (FASEB advocacy site)
http://www.animalrightsextremism.org (good example of an issue-specific site)
www.NIHadvocacy.org (resources relating to the National Institutes of Health)
NIH has provided fact sheets and advocacy slides (PowerPointTM) individualized for each state
http://opa.faseb.org/pages/Advocacy/congressvisittoolbox.htm
FASEB’s “Congressional Visit Toolbox: Your Guide to Advocating for Science on Capitol Hill and at Home”.
Health Promotion Advocates
http://www.healthprootionadvocmates.org/resources/index.htm Health Promotion Advocates is a group of committed individuals who have formed an advocacy group to integrate health promotion concepts into national health policy. Their Web site includes a Tools and Resources page with materials that can be helpful to those advocating for policy that encourages physical activity and exercise. In addition to briefing documents, background information and policy recommendations, the site links to other sites and organizations.
National Rural Health Association
http://www.ruralhealthweb.org/go/left/policy-and-advocacy
NIH Advocacy
The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) advances biological science through collaborative advocacy for research policies that promote scientific progress and education and lead to improvements in human health.
P.R. Newswire Public Interest
http://www.prnewswire.com/publicinterest/
Public news distribution service. Links include: Federal & State Legislation; Federal Executive Branch, Agencies
Research!America
http://www.researchamerica.org/advocacy
Research!America is the nation's largest not-for-profit public education and advocacy alliance, committed to making research to improve health a higher national priority.
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Focuses on improving both the health of everyone in America and their health care—how it’s delivered, how it’s paid for, and how well it does for patients and their families.
Society for Women’s Health Research
http://www.womenshealthresearch.org/site/PageServer
The nation’s only non-profit organization whose mission is to improve the health of all women through research, education and advocacy.
States in Action: Innovative Health Policy
http://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/publications_show.htm?doc_id=712243
The States in Action bimonthly newsletter describes innovative state health programs from across the country.
Strategic Alliance ENACT Local Policy Database
http://preventioninstitute.org/sa/policies/index.php
A coalition of nutrition and physical activity advocates which serves as an independent voice that is separate from, but able to influence, government and industry.
Trust for America’s Health
A non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to saving lives by protecting the health of every community and working to make disease prevention a national priority.
Washington Health Policy Week in Review
http://www.commonwealthfund.org/healthpolicyweek/healthpolicyweek_show.htm?doc_id=728453
Selected stories from the Commonwealth Fund’s daily newsletter CQ HealthBeat
WashingtonWatch
http://www.washingtonwatch.com/
Tracks bills and their economic impact