WK4 Signature Assignment: Advocate for or Against a Current or Proposed Bill Related to Public Health at the State Level
Instructions
Political Advocacy Activity
This is a small group activity that will explore your role as a political advocate. In a small group of 2-3 (or individually), you will assess a current state health initiative or legislation. Your group will assess and evaluate the implications of your chosen political issue. The project must include all sections listed below. If you prefer to work alone, please inform the professor during the first week of class.
1. Include a summary of the health-related bill by explaining the bill in your own words (i.e., main purpose for the legislation including problem or issue is supposed to address; the way the legislation intends to help address the issue).
2. Identify the author of the bill, including party affiliation and district number.
3. Describe the history of the bill and the impetus behind it. You should be able to obtain this by e-mailing the author of the bill.
4. Describe your view about the legislation including your rationale for choosing this bill and for supporting it or opposing it.
5. Explain the public health significance (e.g., epidemiologic statistics about the problem or issue the bill purports to address) social aspects (e.g., socioeconomic status, educational level, gender, religion of individuals who may be impacted by the law, etc.), political questions (e.g., political parties, Political Action Committees (PACs), support or opposition of special interests groups, for example: some industries) ethical concerns (e.g., issues of equity, justice, respect for privacy, autonomy), economic impact (e.g., fiscal consequences, financial burden for individuals or businesses), and professional issues (e.g., impact on health care providers or other professionals, views of healthcare groups such as The American Public Health Association, The American Medical Association) that may be related to the proposed law.
6. Identify individuals and organizations that support or oppose potential legislation. Research the position of each side and briefly describe the rationale for their stand.
7. Choose a political representative to contact from the district of one of the students in your group. If the bill your group selected was introduced in the assembly, contact an assemblyperson; on the other hand, if you are working on a piece of legislation being considered in the senate, contact your local senator. Make sure you do not contact the author of the bill you are writing about, as this would not make sense for the purpose of this activity. Identify the representative you contacted and include – name, address, telephone number, e-mail, party affiliation, district number.
8. Send an email to your representative’s office and explain your collective view about the issue (i.e., why your group supports or opposes the bill). You need to come to a consensus as a group, so your collective opinion appears coherent. Inquire if the representative has made a decision about how they will vote on this legislation. In your paper, summarize the response to this effort.
Political Activity Presentation
This is a group presentation based on the Political Advocacy Activity above. You will develop a PowerPoint presentation that follows the format below. (Total time not to exceed 10 minutes)
· Post a link to your bill (or post a copy of the actual bill)
· One member of the group will summarize the most relevant aspects of the bill (e.g., author, history of the bill (if available), author’s party affiliation, purpose, purported impact on public health, possible economic impact)
· Each group will present both the arguments for and against (i.e., the pros and cons) the bill to the class. These arguments may have been made by any person or organization in favor or in opposition of the bill but also may have been derived from your group analysis of the proposed legislation.
· Meaningful summary and conclusion of material presented.
The group should develop a few evocative discussion questions to stimulate discussion.
Requirements
· Length: This assignment must be at least 5 pages (excluding the title and reference pages).
· References: Include 5 scholarly resources.
