Legislative Advocacy:
How to Effectively Engage
LTC Ombudsman Statewide Training
March 26th, 2009
Presenter
David Vinkler
Associate State Director-Advocacy and Outreach
(217) 522-7700
dvinkler@aarp.org
3
AARP Illinois Advocacy
Advocacy Manager and Staff in Springfield office
State Legislative Committee – volunteers work
with Advocacy Staff to:
Serve as registered lobbyist
Establishes state legislative goals
Determines whether AARP should oppose or support
specific legislation
Participates in AARP activity to advocate for the
desired legislative goals
3
Our Legislative Priorities
Long Term Care – Providing support to older
adults in need of long term care both in their
community and in a facility
Utilities – Protecting Illinois consumers from
excessive rate hikes from electrical and other
utility companies
Health Care Quality and Reform – Working to
improve access to affordable quality health care
across Illinois
3
National Direction
Divided We Fail
Create a movement for change and
activate the American people to propel
the leadership of government,
business and non-profits, as well as
individuals to meet the challenges of
changing demographics—to find
solutions in health and retirement
security that benefit all generations.
3
Pieces of
Divided We Fail
Stories
&
Pledges
&
&
4
Long Term Care Partners
Last winter, AARP and several other groups came together
with a coalition of advocates, stakeholders and service
providers that serve those in need of long term care
services. The groups that participated were:
•AARP
•SEIU
•Area Agencies on Aging
•Ombudsman
•Home Care Service Providers and Case Managers
•Adult Day Service Providers
•Access Living
•The Jane Addams Senior Caucus
And more…
3
Coalition Goals
The primary goal of the coalition was to ensure that
the funding of programs and state regulations were
adequate to support quality services programs.
Why?
Other than nursing homes, AARP and SEIU, most
of these groups do not have the experience or the
resources to create the presence necessary to
influence the state legislative or budget process.
3
What Happened
With these groups working together there
were significant increases made to senior
services in the fiscal year 2009 budget.
While we fell short on getting many of the
successes we needed in smaller programs,
the Department on Aging budget was one of
the very few that had an overall increase in
spite of the revenue shortages.
3
Challenges
4 Key Areas for Long Term Care Advocacy
•Long Term Care Structure
•Financial Limitations
•Awareness
•Public Involvement
3
Challenges:
Structural & Financial
Consider how state money is spent on Long Term Care:
$99,837
$90,220
$414,299
CCP
Nursing Homes
$1,317,464
SLF
Other Senior
Services
Dollars in Thousands
3
Challenges:
Structural & Financial
1.
2.
3.
4.
Nursing Homes and Supportive Living Facilities are unified
in seeking higher rates for the standard services they
provide.
CCP providers and other services offer a wide array of
services through different mechanisms. This leaves each
service with a small pool of resources and they often
compete with each other for those resources.
Programs like the Ombudsman Program and Elder Abuse
are often overlooked in the budget process because of
their relatively small size and alternate funding sources.
Advocacy for issues like increasing personal needs
allowance are often costly and end up pitting small
programs against a large well-funded industry.
3
Challenges:
Structure & Financial
Example: Personal Needs Allowance
1.
2.
3.
4.
The Ombudsman Program pushes for an increase in the
personal needs allowance for nursing home residents
every year and often several bills are introduced.
The cost of increasing the personal needs allowance by
only $20 per month would amount to about $15 million.
Funding this change must come either from additional
state dollars or out of the pocket of nursing homes.
Other small programs find it difficult to assist in advocacy
because they are struggling to receive funding simply to
stay open.
3
Challenges:
Awareness and Involvement
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Unless a family member or an individual is faced with
the need for Long Term Care Services, most people
don’t know anything about them.
Media is often uninterested in stories on Long Term
Care except for a few cases (i.e. abuse in facilities).
Services other than nursing homes can vary by region
especially in the ways that people access them.
Consumers of services dealing with disability,
dementia and often poverty are not able to go to
legislators offices or attend rallies.
Caregivers must balance working and providing care.
They have little time to devote to advocacy.
3
Challenges:
Awareness and Involvement
Time For A Quiz:
•
•
•
•
Does Anyone know what CCP stands for?
Where will you go when you need services but not
nursing services?
Can anyone name a service available through the
Older Americans Act administered by your Area
Agency on Aging
Where does the term Ombudsman come from?
3
How do we fix it?
How do you influence an
elected leader?
3
How do we fix it?
Campaign Contributions?
•
•
AARP is a non-partisan organization and does not
donate to campaigns
Small programs do not have the resources to donate
Votes and Contact?
•
•
•
This is where we have the influence
Votes and contact with the legislators’ constituency is
what those contributions are spent on
This is where we can use everyone’s help
3
How do we fix it?
Surprisingly easy methods to make an
impact:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Visit your State Representative or Senator
Call or email your State Representative or Senator
Write a letter to the Editor
Call in to local media
Communicate with each other
Get Involved and involve others
3
How do we fix it?
Don’t get discouraged when:
•
•
•
You receive a form letter reply
Have to leave a message
You don’t get the media coverage you’d like
It’s all numbers:
•
•
•
One call doesn’t get much but 30 calls on the right day
does.
Just last year AARP & SEIU stopped millions of
dollars in cuts with just 600 phone calls and the threat
of a rally at the Thompson center.
The more letters and press releases the media
receives, the more they will respond.
3
How do you influence AARP?
•
If you’d like to call us with an issue and/or you’d like to
get help on coordinating a Springfield visit, please call
us at (217) 522-7700.
Thank You
3