AACOM Advocacy Day 2023
Advocate for OME!
Advocacy Day 2023 took place on October 17 and 18 and was our largest Advocacy Day to date! Participants engaged directly with lawmakers and participate in coordinated calls to action urging Congress to support policies and programs critical to the osteopathic community. Advocacy Day 2023 has concluded but you can advocate year round! Explore our event videos, materials, and other ways to advocate below. We hope to see you at Advocacy Day 2024!
The Issues
We are asking Congress to:
Promote DO Graduate Medical Education Parity through the FAIR Act
Federally-funded graduate medical education programs frequently exclude or impose burdensome requirements on DOs. These practices exacerbate the workforce shortage by limiting the availability of licensed DO physicians. The Fair Access In Residency (FAIR) Act (H.R. 751) is needed to ensure DOs can participate in all Medicare-funded residency programs and the nation is leveraging the entire physician workforce.
Fund Community-Based Clinical Rotations
Many community health centers are located in rural or urban underserved areas that need more physicians. Research shows that medical students receiving education and training in rural and underserved communities are more likely to stay and practice in those areas. Congress needs to increase training sites for medical students in rural communities to strengthen the physician workforce for underserved populations.
Join the Movement and Share Your Story
Introducing AACOM's newest tool for online advocacy, Gather Voices!
AACOM is eager to hear from members of the osteopathic community about why advocating for the FAIR Act is so important to ensuring that DOs have an equitable path to residency training and how your training in community-based settings, such as community health centers, ambulatory clinics and physician offices, has helped increase healthcare access in rural and underserved communities!
We encourage you to spend one minute or less recording and uploading your videos about what the FAIR Act means to you and the benefits of community-based clinical rotations:
Advocacy Day Agenda
October 17, 2023, 1:00-3:00 PM ET
- Opening Remarks
Robert A. Cain, DO, AACOM President and CEO - Congressional Health Policy Update
Representative Chellie Pingree (D-ME)
- Strengthening Osteopathic Policy Priorities Through the Budget Process
Sarah Donovan and Rick Hegg, Senior Policy Advisors, Venable LLP - Video Presentations
Representatives Sam Graves (R-MO) and Julia Letlow (R-LA)
- Advocacy Training with AACOM Government Relations
October 18, 2023
- Congressional meetings and grassroots advocacy
- You can take action by:
- Reviewing your advocacy materials
- Using our Social Media Toolkit to download graphics, share messages and advocate for policy change.
- Going to the AACOM Action Center to tell Congress to:
- Recording videos about:
Testimonials from past attendees
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Visit the AACOM Advocacy Day 2022 page for a look at last year’s panels and policy issues.