Join Our Key Contacts Program! 
Want to tell your legislators the true story about what is happening in health care? Legislators are making decisions every day that will affect your patients and your practice. They need to hear from those who will be affected by those decisions. A “key contact” does just that.  

As a key contact you will inform your state legislators and/or US Congressional representatives about critical health care issues in California. CAFP will provide you with information on specific issues as they reach crucial points in the state or federal policymaking process.  You can then convey this information to your legislators as an informed, involved constituent. 

Interested? BECOME A KEY CONTACT TODAY! 

10 Ways You Can Get Involved
Watching the news at night or reading the paper in the morning can leave you feeling as if you have little control over the way things are being run. Every day, decisions are made that affect your life and could change the way you practice medicine. Don't let this feeling stop you from taking a few easy steps to influence those decisions.

If you do any combination of at least three of the following actions, you will be on your way to affecting change in not only your personal and professional life, but also the community around you.

1. Become a "Significant Constituent"
What do you need to do to become a significant constituent? It's easy: vote and support the candidate for whom you are voting, volunteer, contribute to his or her campaign, or gather your friends and colleagues in support. Voting in the primary election is very important. The majority of elections are decided in the primary because many districts are designed to be safe for either party, making the general election just a coronation for the primary winner. Your vote in the primary is even more important because of increasingly low voter turnout. Do your research and vote for the candidate who best represents your priorities.

2. Become Active in the Family Physicians' Political Action Committee (FP-PAC)
2007-08 will be a critical time for health care reform, so contributions to FP-PAC will be especially important. Last year, FP-PAC, supported the campaigns of 12 candidates seeking to gain or retain seats in the state legislature. Eleven of the 12 won their elections, demonstrating how FP-PAC is helping to ensure State government includes representatives interested in you and your patients. FP-PAC contributions support legislators who:

• Support funding for family medicine training
• Fight for adequate payment through Medi-Cal and other public programs
• Support fair payment from private third-party payers
• Oppose legislation that creates unnecessary physician hassle
• Work to improve access to care
• Defend Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act malpractice protections

Get more information on FP-PAC.

3. Be a Resource to Policy Leaders
Policy leaders may not be aware of all the issues affecting their districts. Send them a note saying that you'd like to help identify issues of concern to constituents. Establishing contact with them is very important. Take the time to learn about your legislator and use your similarities to highlight the importance of your issues.

4. Become an Expert
Part of being a resource to legislators is providing reliable, fact-based, extensive and substantive information. Your knowledge of such issues as health information technology, rural health, language access, immunizations, telemedicine, etc., can endear you to legislators looking to make informed decisions on bills they are writing or how to vote on specific issues.

5. Understand and Participate
As a resource to policy leaders, it is important to understand how bills become law. As an expert, you will be qualified to testify at committee hearings and work with committee consultants and aides on the bills in question. A representative will take you more seriously if you refer to the piece of legislation by title and bill number. Also be sure to know which legislators are involved in the issue area with which you are concerned. It is important to direct your communications to the appropriate legislator, or more importantly the legislator's staff who are usually responsible for drafting legislation.

6. Go Public, Locally
Once a bill has been introduced, it is essential that is has not only the support of legislators but also the public as a whole. An informed, supportive representative of the physician community can go a long way in helping important legislation move through the various channels in the Capitol. Practice speaking to large audiences. Express your views articulately and in a way that someone unfamiliar with medicine and medical issues will be able to understand. Contribute regularly to your local newspaper or radio station and make sure your issues are part of the local dialogue.

7. Get Public Policy on Your Side
While public support is essential, it is also important to garner the support of organized groups that represent larger portions of the public. A bill supported by the CMA or CAFP carries far more weight than one with no organizational support. Work with colleagues, join organizations and take leadership positions.

8. Know Your Position's Weakness
Understand every aspect of your issue and be aware of the potential drawbacks of your position. If you tell the whole story and address problems openly and directly, you won't be labeled as biased and irrationally supporting your cause. Be upfront about the opposition to your position, and know the facts and reasons why your position is more solid in terms of evidence and policy.

9. Know Your Opposition
Don't get mad, don't get even and don't burn bridges. Politics can create strange bedfellows, and while you may oppose a group or person on one issue, you may need their support on the next. Maintain some emotional distance from your issue and resist the temptation to let your personal feelings interfere with your arguments for your position.

10. Be Informed
Know the issues and the policy process; stay up-to-date on any changes in medical data or with specific legislation. Know about amendments to bills and stay apprised of regulatory changes. Listen to others and read as much as you can, particularly the "Your Voice" section of Academy in Action, the "Political Pulse" column in California Family Physician, and FP-PAC updates.

For more information on getting involved in CAFP's legislative activities, please contact Adam Francis at afrancis@familydocs.org or call (415) 345-8667.