APA PUBLIC INTEREST Government Relations Office (PI-GRO) · 2020. 8. 28. · new role as the...

APA PUBLIC INTEREST

Government Relations Office (PI-GRO)

apa.org/pi/gr

Spring 2018 Update

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2 APA PUBLIC INTEREST Government Relations Office (PI-GRO) SPRING 2018 UPDATE

ON THE COVER2017 Advocacy Day: Members of the Leadership Institute for Women in Psychology took to the Hill in support of the Violence Against Women Act.

This report, including links to additional information about our activities, is available online at apa.org/about/gr/pi

750 First St. NE, Washington, DC 20002apa.org

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APA PUBLIC INTEREST Government Relations Office (PI-GRO) SPRING 2018 UPDATE 1

About APA’s Public Interest Government Relations Office (PI-GRO)

PI-GRO actively shapes federal policy to promote psychology in the public interest. As part of APA’s Public Interest Directorate, the office applies psychology to the fundamental problems of human welfare and promotes the equitable and just treatment of all segments of society. This work involves informing Congress, the White House, and federal agencies about psychological science and practice and their relevance to federal policy.

PI-GRO regularly works with the APA membership to ensure the success of its advocacy efforts and to enhance the ability of the field to advocate on key issues. PI-GRO relies on member experts to assist in the development and dissemination of educational and advocacy materials that are shared with Congress and the executive branch.

In addition, PI-GRO provides APA members and student affiliates with a variety of public policy and advocacy opportunities, including:

• Federal advocacy trainings and Capitol Hill visits

• Congressional Fellowship Program

• APA Federal Action Network

In this report you will find information about the significant achievements and efforts of PI-GRO. To learn more about PI-GRO initiatives, please visit PI-GRO’s website at apa.org/pi/gr and consider joining the Federal Action Network at advocate.apa.org.

APA member Kathryn Anderson, MD (left), and Senior Legislative and APA Federal Affairs Officer Gabe Twose, PhD (right), meet with Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) to support the Violence Against Women Act.

Advocacy Day training

Advocacy Day training

APA’s Micah Haskell-Hoehl (left) and Amalia Corby, MS (right), meet with Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA) to discuss issues related to pregnancy in correctional settings

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Meet Our Staff

Aaron Bishop, MSSWAssociate Executive [email protected]

Amalia Corby-Edwards, MSSenior Legislative and Federal Affairs [email protected]

Serena Dávila, JDSenior Legislative and Federal Affairs [email protected]

Micah Haskell-HoehlLegislative and Federal Affairs [email protected]

Leo Rennie, MPASenior Legislative and Federal Affairs [email protected]

Gabe Twose, PhDSenior Legislative and Federal Affairs [email protected]

Ben VonachenLegislative and Federal Affairs [email protected]

Shannon WoodLegislative [email protected]

Merve Balkaya, [email protected]

LIWP participants, left to right: Tiffany Grimes, J. Celeste Walley, Jean, Karen Brakke, Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA), Andrea Miller, and Annette Kluck.

Rep. Joseph Crowley (D-NY) (right) and Legislative and Federal Affairs Officer Micah Haskell-Hoehl (left) with Roy Aranda, JD, PsyD, at the press conference to announce the introduction of the Kalief Browder Reentry Success Act.


Meet Our Associate Executive Director

After spending 7 years on Capitol Hill and 7 years working for federal agencies, I feel very privileged to serve in a new role as the associate executive director of the Public Interest Government Relations Office (PI-GRO). It is my pleasure to share with you our March 2018 Update on our activities over the past 12 months. In this year’s report, we highlight work being conducted in 13 policy areas to fulfill APA’s mission of creating, communicating, and applying psychological knowledge to benefit society and improve people’s lives.

Our greatest resources are our APA members and staff, the breadth and diversity of expertise that each brings to the table, and the powerful partnerships people share that drive social change. We are living in tumultuous times, and now more than ever we need to invest in each other and collaborate more effectively to improve public policy and daily living for all.

On behalf of PI-GRO, I want to thank you for your tireless efforts to apply psychology to the fundamental problems of human welfare and social justice and to promote the equitable and just treatment of all segments of society. We look forward to working with you to improve opportunities for all those we serve in 2018 and beyond.

Aaron Bishop, MSSWAssociate Executive Director, [email protected]


Empowering APA Members to Bring Psychology to PolicymakersTaking part in political life is a luxury that many Americans take for granted. Your special training and expertise in psychology uniquely qualify you to contribute to the development of federal policies and programs and the reshaping of political attitudes toward psychology. Here are a few ways you can get involved.

FEDERAL ADVOCACY TRAININGS AND CONGRESSIONAL VISITS

Lead Staff Ben Vonachen

PI-GRO regularly empowers APA members to make policy change through advocacy trainings and Capitol Hill visits. In 2017, PI-GRO provided trainings to APA members and accompanied them to 250 congressional office visits. Trainings typically include the fundamentals of congressional processes, an advocacy primer, issue-specific presentations, role plays, and meeting with members of Congress and their staff. These opportu-nities focus on key public policy objectives of the association, allowing participants to have a direct impact on federal policymaking. In 2017, we provided advocacy training to more than 350 individuals.

CAPITOL HILL/IN-DISTRICT VISITS


PI-GRO hosts federal advocacy trainings to prepare APA members to share their expertise effectively with policymakers. These trainings include an overview of the federal legislative process, key strategies for informing and influencing policymakers, current legislative issues, and interactive exercises/role playing. Trainings often include an opportunity for members to advocate on important issues by visiting with members of Congress and their staffs on Capitol Hill and in in-district meetings.

FEDERAL ACTION NETWORKadvocate.apa.org

Lead Staff Shannon Wood

This grassroots advocacy network allows psychologists and students to stay up to date on APA’s federal policy initiatives, influence federal poli-cymakers with a unified voice on issues of importance to psychologists, and make use of simple tools to connect with and influence members of Congress. Through the Federal Action Network, users receive periodic emails alerting them to take action on the most important federal issues of the day, including criminal justice reform, mental health reform, and other pressing issues. Because of your continued advocacy, in 2017 APA members sent over 10,000 letters to lawmakers through the Federal Action Network.

APA/APF CONGRESSIONAL FELLOWSHIP PROGRAMapa.org/about/gr/fellows

Lead Staff Gabe Twose, PhD

This acclaimed program, offered under the auspices of the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s Science and Technology Policy Fellowships, offers APA members the opportunity to spend one year as a special assistant to a member of Congress or a congressional committee on Capitol Hill. In addition to the general APA Congressional Fellowship, the American Psychological Foundation–funded Jacquelin Goldman Congressional Fellowship supports developmental and clinical child psychologists in gaining expertise in public policy. See the APA Congressional Fellowship webpage to learn more about this unique expe-rience.

CAPITOL HILL BRIEFINGS

The Dream Act of 2017: A Scientific Perspective on Immigration Congressional staffers and psychologists came together in November to discuss their support of the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act (the DREAM Act). In conjunction with Congressman Raúl Grijalva’s office, the panelists educated approximately 50 individuals—Hill staff and the public—on the importance of psychological research and immigration policy.

Escaping Homelessness: Helping Families Reach Their Full Potential In June, we joined with coalition partners to hold a congressional brief-ing titled “Escaping Homelessness: Helping Families Reach Their Full Potential.” The briefing—hosted by Sens. Feinstein (D-CA) and Portman (R-OH) and Reps. Loebsack (D-IA, 2nd) and Stivers (R-OH, 15th)—high-lighted new research published in the APA Division 37 (Society for Child and Family Policy and Practice) book series Advances in Child and Family Policy and Practice.

Interested in participating in a Congressional briefing? Please contact any of our dedicated staff (see p. 2) for your particular area of interest.

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PI-GRO Advocacy Issues and Portfolio Updates

AGING apa.org/advocacy/health/older-americans.aspx

Lead Staff Serena Dávila, JD

Healthy aging, integrated health care, suicide prevention, family caregiver support, and improving anti-poverty and community-based services

• At the APA 2017 convention, we gave a policy presentation titled “Advocating for Older Adults: Translating Effectively From Science to Policy.” We addressed the translational continuum—that is, translating findings in research into medical practice and meaningful health out-comes in the context of research and practices with older adults.

• APA endorsed the Elder Abuse Prevention and Prosecution Act of 2017, which President Trump signed into law in October. This law has been called the most significant elder justice legislation to pass since the Elder Justice Act of 2010. APA supports its goal of improving our nation’s response to elder abuse and financial exploitation.

• Also in October, we made specific recommendations to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Strategic Plan Response on how best to reform, strengthen, and modernize the nation’s health care system. We focused on how to enhance opportunities for professional training in the psychology of aging at the doctoral and postdoctoral levels to address the growing number of older adults in need of mental and behavioral health services. We also emphasized the need to increase early identification and treatment of older adults with mental health problems through outreach and providing services in places that older adults frequent.

CHILDREN, YOUTH, AND FAMILIES apa.org/advocacy/civil-rights/family

Lead Staff Micah Haskell-Hoehl

Child abuse, access to child care and preschool programs, improving mental health, juvenile justice, and violence prevention

• Along with members of the Children’s Budget Coalition, we urged members of Congress to adequately fund the full range of child- and family-serving federal programs.

• We supported legislation for increased child care support for working families, trauma-informed care for children and families, the needs of homeless and foster youth in higher education success, and reauthori-zation of the Children’s Health Insurance Program.

CRIMINAL JUSTICEapa.org/advocacy/criminal-justice

Lead Staff Micah Haskell-Hoehl

Priority populations, disparities, human and civil rights, diversion from incarceration, and mental and behavioral health

• Based on APA’s long-standing work in this area, we were asked by Rep. Joseph Crowley (D-NY) to participate in the introduction of the Kalief Browder Reentry Success Act. We worked to help amplify APA’s voice by including Roy Aranda, PsyD, JD, past president of the New York State Psychological Association, in the press conference announcing the legislation.

• We continued to co-chair the Consensus Workgroup on Behavioral Health Issues in Criminal Justice; our activities included recruitment of new members, organizing and chairing coalition meetings, and orga-nizing an upcoming briefing on prison mental health.

ETHNIC MINORITY AFFAIRSapa.org/advocacy/civil-rights/diversity

Lead Staff Serena Dávila, JD

Improving health and promoting wellness, cultural competence, the Minority Fellowship Program, health services for ethnic minority popula-tions, and immigration

• We started and led a Minority Fellowship Program (MFP) coalition comprised of organizations that receive MFP funding to advocate for maintaining and increasing funding for the program.

• While lobbying and advocating to support the DREAM Act, we drafted a letter of support to Congressional leaders on the legislation. APA wrote two press statements encouraging the president to preserve the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

HEALTH DISPARITIES apa.org/advocacy/health-disparities

Lead StaffLeo Rennie, MPA

Reducing health disparities in key health disparity populations, increasing access to mental and behavioral health services for these populations, and addressing the social determinants of health and federal health equity efforts

• In September, we coordinated Dr. Arthur C. Evans’s participation in the first Capitol Hill briefing in his role as APA’s chief executive officer. Sponsored by the bipartisan Congressional Men’s Health Caucus and the Men’s Health Network, the briefing sought to educate policymak-ers about the importance of the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) in providing health coverage to nearly 9 million children in families with incomes too high to qualify for Medicaid but unable to afford private insurance. Dr. Evans focused his remarks on childhood behavioral health needs, with special attention to the specific concerns of boys and young men of color, and he drew upon insights from his experiences as mental health commissioner in Philadelphia.

• In 2017, GRO staff participated in two conferences sponsored by APA’s Health Disparities Office. Leo Rennie presented on the federal public policy landscape at APA’s “Vulnerable Boys and Men: Advancing Programs and Policies in Uncertain Times” conference. The presen-tation described current challenges and opportunities involved in improving outcomes for males across the lifespan in terms of physical and mental health care, early childhood education, and the criminal justice sphere. We also organized a public policy panel for the “Stress

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and Health Disparities: Building Capacity to Understand, Prevent and Treat Stress in Underserved Populations” conference. Speakers’ topics included federally funded stress and disparities research, evi-dence-based interventions, and APA’s revised multicultural guidelines.

HIV/AIDSapa.org/advocacy/health-disparities/hiv-prevention-treatment.aspx

Lead Staff Leo Rennie, MPA

Promoting integration of mental and behavioral health in HIV prevention, treatment, and research and advocating for sustained federal investments in domestic and global HIV/AIDS efforts

• Throughout 2017, in partnership with leading national organizations and coalitions, we urged Congress to maintain the federal investment in domestic HIV prevention, treatment, and research. Federal HIV funding remained stable, as key agencies’ budgets, such as the those of the CDC and SAMHSA, remained stable in FY 2017. Advocacy to avert proposed cuts in FY 2018 continues.

• We supported the REPEAL HIV Discrimination Act, a bill to promote modernization of outdated state and local HIV criminalization laws, and worked to raise awareness about this issue among APA constitu-encies and the public.

CIVIL AND HUMAN RIGHTS apa.org/advocacy

Lead StaffGabe Twose, PhD

International violence, global human rights accountability, domestic issues such as solitary confinement, and supporting ratification of UN Conventions

• In June, we submitted a letter of support for the Elie Wiesel Genocide and Atrocities Prevention Act, which would enhance the U.S. capacity to prevent and mitigate mass atrocities as both a national security interest and a core moral responsibility. We particularly praised a pro-vision mandating the training of foreign service officers to ensure they have the skills to recognize and prevent genocide, and emphasized the social science research on early warning signs.

• In December, we sent a letter to Secretary of State Tillerson thanking him for recent responses to anti-Rohingya violence in Myanmar. The letter also calls for a safe space for humanitarian groups to provide psychological and other services to Rohingya refugees and for the United States to fund programs that encourage reconciliation after violence.

DISABILITIESapa.org/advocacy/civil-rights/disability


Access to health care, civil rights, accessibility, employment protections, stigma, international issues, parents with disabilities, caregiving, and elementary and secondary education

• We have continued advocacy against the ADA Education and Reform Act legislation, which would significantly weaken the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) by proposing a 180-day waiting period before an individual with a disability could enforce his or her rights under the ADA to gain access to businesses, social services, and educational institutions. Conversely, we also partnered with the AARP and other health advocacy organizations as a member of the Medical Expense Deduction Coalition to urge Congress to protect the medical expense deduction in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. The final bill included a lowered 7.5% threshold based on income for individuals to claim the medical expense deduction for the next 2 years.

• Together with APA’s Office on Disabilities, we organized and led a policy luncheon with various stakeholders in the disability community for the Association for Successful Parenting in Washington, DC. The luncheon aimed to identify resources and strategies to effectively advocate for the social justice rights and family autonomy of parents with disabilities.

SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER DIVERSITYapa.org/advocacy/civil-rights/sexual-diversity

Lead StaffLeo Rennie, MPA Gabe Twose, PhD

Stigma, discrimination and prejudice, hate crimes, health disparities, health data collection and research, violence, bullying prevention, and workplace rights

• Throughout 2017, we submitted regulatory comments to executive branch agencies urging the administration to retain anti-discrimination protections for and collect data on sexual and gender minorities. For example, we urged the maintenance of nondiscrimination provisions in the Affordable Care Act and encouraged the administration to maintain protections for transgender people, including members of the armed forces. We also urged HHS to retain sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) questions in national data collection efforts and to start collection of SOGI information in the National Violent Death Report System.

• We also sent a letter of support of the LGBT Inclusion Act, which would require uniform collection of SOGI data in federal surveys, including the decennial census.

• In collaboration with Division 44 (Society for the Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity), we hosted a webinar to educate participants about the current federal policy landscape and its impact on the LGBTQ community. Our staff also consulted with the division’s executive board during its January 2018 mid-winter meeting on planned federal and state advocacy efforts in 2018.

PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH CAREapa.org/advocacy/health

Lead StaffAmalia Corby, MS Ben Vonachen

Health care reform policy, increasing access to mental and behavioral health services, reducing stigma, and mental health parity

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• Throughout 2017, APA participated in a nationwide advocacy effort to successfully defeat several attempts in the U.S. Congress to repeal and replace the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). A huge credit goes to the numerous APA members who took action through APA’s Federal Action Network, resulting in well over 10,000 direct emails, phone calls, and social media outreach to members of Congress. APA advocated that any health care reform legislation to repeal and replace the ACA should increase the number of Americans with coverage for physical and behavioral health and substance use disorder services, maintain reproductive health coverage, stabilize the insurance market, and provide additional consumer protections to our nation’s most vulnerable populations.

• We also established and coordinated a cross-directorate APA working group focused on improving APA’s advocacy regarding research, service, supports, and collaboration with SAMHSA. In particular, the group planned a February 2018 meeting at APA’s headquarters in Washington, DC, between APA CEO Arthur Evans, PhD, and Elinore F. McCance-Katz, MD, PhD, the assistant secretary for mental health and substance use, as well as SAMHSA leadership.

POVERTY AND SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS apa.org/advocacy/socioeconomic-status

Lead StaffGabe Twose, PhD

Access to health care, education, safe and affordable housing, adequate wages, safety net programs, and employment laws

• In June, we joined with coalition partners to hold a congressional briefing, “Escaping Homelessness: Helping Families Reach Their Full Potential.” The briefing—hosted by Sens. Feinstein (D-CA) and Portman (R-OH) and Reps. Loebsack (D-IA, 2nd) and Stivers (R-OH, 15th)—highlighted new research published in APA’s Div. 37 (Society for Child and Family Policy and Practice) book series Advances in Child and Family Policy and Practice.

• In August, we sent a letter of support for the Raise the Wage Act, which would increase the earnings of our nation’s lowest wage workers, thereby improving the well-being of low-income families. The letter notes that higher wages help individuals rise out of poverty both by increasing their access to food, health care, and education and by removing the cognitive burdens associated with scarcity of resources.

TRAUMA, VIOLENCE, AND ABUSEapa.org/advocacy/interpersonal-violence

Lead StaffAmalia Corby, MS

Victim support, expanding the research base on violence prevention, strengthening the capacity of mental health systems to respond to violence and abuse, and supporting related federal funding

• APA Senior Legislative and Federal Affairs Officer Amalia Corby, MS, participated in a panel discussion on Capitol Hill. The panel, sponsored by members of both the U.S. House and Senate, brought together advocates from the mental health community and experts in violence prevention research to discuss messaging about gun violence in a way that does not stigmatize individuals with mental illness. Ms. Corby presented information from the APA report Gun Violence: Prediction,

Prevention, and Policy and discussed how individuals with mental illness are more likely to be victims of violence than perpetrators of violence.

• Energy and Commerce Committee Democrats invited psychologist Susan Sorenson, PhD, to discuss gun violence as a public health issue. Committee members heard from public health experts on approaches to prevent gun violence and the role federally funded research must play in America’s response to the gun violence epidemic. Panelists included public health experts in pediatrics, emergency medicine, and domestic violence. Sorenson’s remarks focused on the prevalence of firearm suicides and the use of firearms as a means of control in domestic violence.

WOMEN’S ISSUESapa.org/advocacy/civil-rights/women

Lead StaffAmalia Corby, MS

Postpartum depression, reproductive health, prevention of violence and abuse, and equality in employment and education

• We held an advocacy training and Capitol Hill day for participants at the Leadership Institute for Women in Psychology. Forty psychologists provided congressional offices with information on programs under the Violence Against Women Act that target underserved populations and requested full funding for those programs. Participants discussed how the risk of domestic violence and sexual violence is higher for women of color, women with disabilities, sexual and gender minorities, older adults, and other marginalized populations. The enthusiastic responses from congressional staff underscored the importance of psychologists coming to the table to help policymakers understand the unique needs of victims of domestic violence and sexual assault.

• Several APA members participated in the congressional briefing “Preventing Human Trafficking: Research in How to Stop Trafficking Before It Starts,” sponsored by the Congressional Victim’s Rights Caucus and organized by the National Prevention Science Coalition. Psychologists Joan Reid, PhD, Jill McLeigh, PhD, and Jennifer Woolard, PhD, discussed risk and protective factors for trafficking at the com-munity, family, and individual levels. Audrey Morrissey, director of My Life My Choice, provided an engaging testimonial on her experience as a survivor of human trafficking and her current work to protect and empower at-risk youth.

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PI-GRO IMPACT 2017

350+ Participants Currently in Advocacy Trainings

250+ Meetings During Congressional Visits

90+ Supporting Policy Documents

Created

10,000+ Letters to Congress Generated Through the Federal Action Network


CONNECT WITH US

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