POLITICAL ADVOCACY LETTER- RE: H.R.2581 – Nurse Staffing Standards for Hospital Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2019

Political Advocacy Letter Assignment Guidelines- Nurses are uniquely positioned in the front lines to have a specialized perspective of our healthcare system and its deficits.  This particular viewpoint is critical in guiding the development of healthcare policies and laws, however, historically it is a missing piece to the complex policy-making puzzle. Any nurse, including you, has the potential to dramatically influence health policy and improve our healthcare delivery system through advocacy and civic engagement.    

 

Read the following article:    (You will need to copy / paste into a browser to access the article). 

 

Assignment Directions:

1.     Locate a current legislative action in process (either State or Federal level) of interest to you. Be sure to include the bill number and details.

a.      Visit to find active legislation. 

b.     The American Nurses Association (ANA) website at can also be helpful to find bills pertinent to nursing. 

c.      Based on your bill of interest, this will determine whether you will plan to write the letter to a local town legislator or a federal state legislator where you live.

d.     Make sure you choose a bill that has not passed into becoming a law before writing your letter.

2.     Identify your audience.  You can obtain your legislator’s name and address from the congressional directory listing at

a.      For additional assistance finding your local elected officials:

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3.     Decide upon your stance on the proposed legislation and your rationale.

4.     Develop a professional (language, grammar, and approach) letter to your legislator: 

a.      In the first paragraph, state your purpose and identify the specific piece of legislation you are referring to (e.g. House bill:  H.R. ___.  Senate bill: S_____).

b.     Be courteous and to-the-point.  Include key information using examples to support your position.  Organize your main points into separate paragraphs and proceed in a logical manner. 

c.      Address only one issue in your letter. 

d.     If possible keep the letter to one page.

e.      Your closing and opening sentences are especially important as they are the most likely to be remembered. 

f.      Make sure to edit your letter carefully.

5.     Provide a copy of this letter along with a copy of the bill you are writing about to your instructor on the due date assigned.

6.     Send your letter to your legislator. 

7.     You may or may not receive a response back from your letter. If you do receive a response, please forward a copy to your instructor(s).

8.     Provide your instructor with a reference page using correct APA format. This should be submitted with your letter on SafeAssign. 

 

A sample letter can be found . http://dnanurse.org/sites/default/files/downloads/2014/DNA%20-%20Sample%20Hill%20Letter%20-%20Title%20VIII%20Programs.pdf

 

A sample template can be found .  It is not necessary to follow this template exactly for this assignment.

 

My bill of choice is H.R.2581 – Nurse Staffing Standards for Hospital Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2019., unless you find something better. The details of this bill is on this URL  https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/2581?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22psychiatric+nursing+bills%22%5D%7D&s=2&r=8