What Is Advocacy?
Advocacy is the process of influencing policy makers when they create laws and regulations. There are three key aspects to advocacy:
- Creating policies where they are needed when none exist
- Reforming harmful or ineffective policies
- Ensuring good policies are implemented and enforced
Advocacy Strategies
The Association for Diagnostics & Laboratory Medicine’s (formerly AACC) advocacy efforts employ multiple strategies that are coordinated to maximize their effectiveness. These strategies are largely carried out by or in coordination with the association’s government affairs staff at our Washington, D.C., headquarters. They may be aimed at directly influencing lawmakers and federal agencies or focused on changing public perception and creating pressure around an issue. Some of these activities may include:
- Meeting with lawmakers and legislative staff
- Providing analysis and information to committees and legislative offices
- Testifying in committee
- Attending stakeholder meetings
- Negotiating with policymakers and other healthcare groups
- Media involvement (press releases, social media campaigns, assisting reporters with stories)
- Organizing Capitol Hill fly-ins for the Association for Diagnostics & Laboratory Medicine (ADLM) members to visit their legislators
- Building stakeholder coalitions around a particular issue
- Grassroots messaging campaigns