Lobby Day
What is Lobby Day?
Lobby Day is an excellent opportunity to increase your awareness of legislative issues affecting medicine, to foster relationships with legislators through political involvement, and to gain real-life education in the practical aspects of physician advocacy. Lobby Day activities, which span two days this year, include interactive educational sessions on effective advocacy and lobbying techniques, briefings on legislative issues currently before Congress, and a full afternoon on Capitol Hill meeting with legislators and their staffs.
2009 Lobby Day Highlights
More than 300 medical students, residents, and fellows attended this year's Lobby Day, March 8-9, at L'Enfant Plaza Hotel in Washington, D.C. Attendees met with the offices of nearly 250 members of Congress to make heard the voice of physicians in training on a number of important issues.
Highlights of this year's Lobby Day included:
- Keynote address by Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR), who spoke about the importance of health system reform.
- Sunday-evening educational sessions on student debt and other pertinent issues facing medical students and residents.
- Educational sessions on shaping policy, lobbying techniques, and the role of grassroots advocacy.
- Interactive "mock" Congressional visit sessions in which participants practiced effective lobbying techniques.
See the full Lobby Day agenda (PDF)
Lobby Day activities were covered by MedPage Today, which produced the following story:
Further reading
Lobby Day focused on the issues of medical student debt, lifting the cap on Medicare-funded graduate medical education (GME) slots, and Medicare/SGR reform. Learn more about these important issues by reviewing the materials below:
Medical student debt
- Issue brief: Reducing Medical Student Debt Strengthens the Physician Workforce (PDF)
- Module: Medical Student Debt (PDF)
Medicare-funded GME slots
- Issue brief: Lifting the Cap on Medicare-funded Residency Slots Reduces the Shortage of Physicians (PDF)
- Module: Medicare-funded GME and the Physician Shortage (PDF)
Medicare/SGR reform
- Issue brief: Medicare and the Sustainable Growth Rate (PDF)
- Module: Medicare and the Sustainable Growth Rate (PDF)
Effective lobbying techniques