LOBBYING BASICS AND

MOBILIZING YOUR GRASS ROOTS

COMMUNITY FOR CHANGE

Nat Bender

April 22, 2012

What ‘Change’ are we looking for?

Increase biofeedback’s visibility and get treatment to more people, while expanding our individual practices and the field.

What does this mean?

• Favorable legislation• Insurance coverage• Acceptance of validity/efficacy

Increase biofeedback’s visibility and get treatment to more people, while expanding our individual practices and the field.

How do we get there? Let’s review related campaigns

‘Real’ Peoples’ Campaigns

• Arab Spring

• Wisconsin labor/community

• Occupy Wall Street / 99%

“’REAL’ PEOPLE’S” CAMPAIGNS

ARE NOT ASTROTURF CAMPAIGNS

Remember these two?

Who created Harry and Louise?

The Coalition for Health Insurance Choices (CHIC) was a front group for the Health Insurance Association of America. It led the insurance industry's campaign to defeat the Clinton health plan in 1993.

Who funded Harry and Louise

CHIC received major funding from the National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB) and the Health Insurance Association of America (HIAA), a trade group of insurance companies. According to Consumer Reports, "the HIAA doesn't just support the coalition; it created it from scratch.”

-http://www.sourcewatch.org/

WHO IS THE NEW

HARRY AND

LOUISE?

Who Funds the Tea Party?

Three heavy hitters rule. You’ve heard of one of them, Rupert Murdoch. The other two, the brothers David and Charles Koch, are even richer, with a combined wealth exceeded only by that of Bill Gates and Warren Buffett among Americans.

The Billionaires Bankrolling the Tea Party, By Frank Rich. New York Times, August 28, 2010

Who Funds ALECMore than 98% of ALEC's revenues come from sources other than legislative dues, such as corporations, corporate trade groups, and corporate foundations. Each corporate member pays an annual fee. […] ALEC also receives direct grants from corporations. It has also received grants from some of the biggest foundations funded by corporate CEOs in the country, such as the Koch family.

http://alecexposed.org/

Lobbying by industry 1998-2011

1. Pharma $2.3 billion

2. Insurance $1.6 billion

9. Hospitals $1 billion

Hospital advertising spending

• In the first six months of 2011, advertising by American hospitals, clinics and medical centers rose 20.4 percent, to $717.2 million, from $595.5 million in the same period in 2010, according to the Kantar Media unit of WPP.

• Patient testimonials have become so popular in the last decade that some hospitals get their hearts — and their heart clinics — set on the approach.

• A Healing Touch From Hospitals, New York Times, September 12, 2011

Pharma Advertising spending

• According to new figures from Nielsen, spending on television advertising fell 23 percent to $2.4 billion from the beginning of 2007 to the end of last year. Spending in 2011 dropped 2 percent from 2010, and last year was the fourth consecutive year that such spending fell. Drug companies in the United States spent more than $3.1 billion on advertising pharmaceuticals on television in 2007, Nielsen said.

• The decline is in sharp contrast to the decade-long drug-industry advertising spree that began in 1997, when the Food and Drug Administration loosened its regulations and allowed direct-to-consumer advertising of prescription drugs on TV.

Drug Makers Dial Down TV Advertising, New York Times, February 2, 2012

Tracking legislation

• Protective against potentially harmful legislation

• Advancing a legislative agenda

• Know the competition

www.nj.gov

Allows multiple methods of searching

www.govnet.com

Alerts, bill tracking (paid service)

Finding Your Grass Roots

• What is your community?

• This weekend, you have discussed:

– Vets

– Schoolchildren

– Pregnant women

– Autistics sufferers (families)

Can you mobilize your grass roots?

• Getting past patient confidentiality concerns and legalities

• Voluntary activism

• Specific Legislation1

• Mobilizing goals2

• Timeline3

Advocacy plan (with agreed upon goals)

Tactics to influence legislators

• Big contributions Legislative visits

• Letters to legislators

• Online activism

• Rally/demonstration

• Petitions

• Testify at hearings

• Media placements

Legislative (and media) outreach

• Develop themes

– Safe, innovate, effective treatment

– Natural alternatives to overuse of medicines/drugs

• Highlight success stories from personal testimonials.

• Provide generic examples (not as good)

• Hold Press conferences/media events. (show and tell with friendly/champion legislators)

Identify internal resources

• Who is going to do the work?

– Paid

– volunteer

• Budget

Putting it all together (tech)

Putting it all together

• Organizational partners/allies

• Reinforcing a sense of urgency

• Measuring outcomes and planning for next steps

Other benefits of a campaign

• Developing committed advocates

• Public discussion of benefits of biofeedback

QUESTIONS?