Washington Days 2012
Horizons in Hemophilia, April 2012
By Michelle Putnam, Associate Director of Advocacy and Research
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As the ten of us flew over Washington, DC on March 7th for the National Hemophilia Foundation’s annual Washington Days, the clear sky afforded us a picture-perfect view of the US Capitol. The weather was warm, there were cherry blossoms across the city, and our team was looking forward to our trip which would give us a national platform to highlight how bleeding disorders impact our community.
The National Hemophilia Foundation hosts its Washington Days trip each spring, bringing hundreds of people to the Capitol to advocate for the bleeding disorder community. This year, Bobbie, Benjamin, Cameron, Kelsey, Heather, and Chris joined Hemophilia of Georgia staffers Michelle Putnam, Jeff Cornett, Maria Manahan, Vic McCarty, and Trish Dominic in meeting with our representatives and senators.
We spent the first afternoon getting acquainted with both the city and the issues. After taking a tour of the Capitol, we attended an advocacy training session where we had the chance to mingle with hundreds of advocates from across the United States. We learned specific ways the Affordable Care Act has benefitted people with bleeding disorders, and how continued funding to HTCs is important to effective care. By Thursday morning we were well prepared to sit down with our Congressmen.
Visiting with a Congressional representative in Washington is a formal, coordinated affair. Meetings are scheduled in advance and it is not uncommon for constituents to meet with the representative’s legislative aide in charge of health care. These aides are very familiar with the issues and have worked on the Hill for a number of years and are the main points of contact with legislators on a particular issue.
We had a busy day of Congressional visits ahead of us and broke into two teams in order to cover them all. Benjamin, Bobbie, and Cameron met with Representatives Hank Johnson, John Lewis, and John Barrow. Benjamin was even invited to try out Congressman Johnson’s desk chair during the meeting. They were also able to meet with legislative aides from the offices of Representative Paul Broun and Representative Lynn Westmoreland.
From our meetings, it was clear that Republican leadership wishes to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Kelsey, Heather, and Chris, who met with aides from the offices of Representatives Tom Price, and Phil Gingrey and Senators Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson, articulated how the law’s protections from pre-existing conditions and lifetime caps are beneficial to people who have bleeding disorders.
Throughout our visits, it was clear who the experts were: our Hemophilia of Georgia clients. The senators, representatives, and legislative aides all gained a new perspective on bleeding disorders which will serve them well when they make decisions regarding funding for HTCs or the new health care law.
Of course, our trip was not all work and no play. We made time to enjoy the city and its rich history by taking a trolley tour and visiting a number of national monuments. Thanks to Jeff Cornett, who has attended Washington Days for a number of years and is well-acquainted with Washington, DC, we even had our own in-house tour guide!
Thanks to all of our clients who helped make this year’s Washington Days so successful. As we continue to advocate for the bleeding disorder community, it is reassuring to know that our best and most effective advocates are right here in our own community.