Advocacy Tools

How to Effectively Communicate With Legislators

It is important to be an effective advocate. There are simple protocols that you should always follow when communicating with members of Congress or their offices. Below you will find simple tips to employ when performing the most used methods of grassroots advocacy.

Telephoning your elected officials

You can contact your legislators in their district or Washington, DC offices. In Washington, you can contact their offices directly. Their contact information is located in the Legislative Action Center or you can contact the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask for the office of your Senators or Representative.

Telephone calls are taken by staff members. You should ask to speak with the legislative aide who handles the issue you would like to comment on.

When you identify yourself, always mention that you are a member of the American Massage Therapy Association. After identifying yourself, tell the aide you would like to leave a brief message telling Senator/Representative (name) that you support/oppose (S.___/H.R.___)."

You should also state reasons for your support or opposition to the bill. AMTA will typically provide you with a sample script or talking points for phone calls. At the end of the call, always ask for your legislator’s position on the bill.

Writing Congress

Writing a letter to members of Congress is still the most utilized way to communicate your position on a piece of legislation. The best way to send a letter is electronically. Generally, AMTA will provide you with a pre-written letter to use however, if you are interested in drafting your own letter, please keep the following tips in mind:

• Short letters are best, no longer than one page. Your purpose for writing the legislator should be stated in the first paragraph of the letter.
• Address only one issue in a letter.
• If your letter pertains to a specific piece of legislation, identify it accordingly. House bills are identified as H.R.____, and Senate bills are identified as S.____.
• Be courteous, to the point, and include key information, using examples to support your position.
• Tell your legislator how the legislation would impact you and other constituents in his/her district.
• Make sure your facts are accurate.
• Ask your legislator for his/her position on the issue.

Addressing correspondence to elected officials

To your Senator:  

The Honorable (full name)
 __(Rm.#)__(name of)Senate Office Building
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Senator (last name)

To a Representative:

 The Honorable (full name)
__ (Rm. #) __ (name of) House Office Building
United States House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Representative (last name)

Meeting with a legislative office

One of the most effective ways to influence the policy-making process is by scheduling a face-to-face meeting with your legislator or a staff person in his/her office.

Don’t be discouraged if you are scheduled to meet with a staff person. Building a relationship with staff who handles the issue you are addressing can be just as effective as meeting with a legislator.

There are several things that you should do before, during and after a meeting to ensure that it is a success:

Scheduling a Meeting

• Draft a written request to meet with your legislator. This request should be sent to the scheduler by email or fax.
• In the letter identify which office location you would like to schedule a meeting.
• A couple of days after you send the request, place a follow-up call to the scheduler.
• Once the meeting has been scheduled, confirm your meeting with a letter or phone call to the scheduler or the legislative aide with whom you will be meeting.

Before the Meeting

• Review background materials and talking points provided to you by AMTA.
• Prepare to discuss no more than two issues.
• Be prepared to share examples of how the issue impacts your practice or patient care.

At The Meeting

• Arrive on time.
• Your time with the legislator or legislative aide might be cut short, so be flexible. Practice delivering your message in five minutes or less.
• Be prepared to answer questions; however, if you don’t know the answer, let them know that you or AMTA will follow up with the information they requested.
• Provide materials to support your position.
• Offer to be a resource on massage therapy issues to the policymaker and his/her staff.
• Follow-up with a thank you.

Leading the Conversation around Massage Therapy and Pain Relief

AMTA is shaping the consumer/patient experience, including advancing a growing area of research regarding how massage therapy can reduce or prevent the need for opioids, mitigating overuse. Americans are now more likely to die of an opioid overdose than of a car crash. 

Five million people within the United States could benefit from massage therapy for pain management, reducing the number of individuals addicted to opioids by 111,000 per year. Massage therapy is part of the solution. National Institutes of Health funded research supports the inclusion of massage therapy as a nonpharmacologic alternative to opioids and is part of guidelines issued by The Joint Commission as well as the American College of Physicians among other organizations.

More than 325,000 massage therapists in the United States provide essential services to millions of patients/clients, both to improve general health and well-being and to treat specific ailments and medical needs. For many patients, massage therapy is a key component of pain management, as well as overall health and wellness.

Pain Management Resources

• Consumer Views and Use of Massage Therapy
• Massage Therapy In Integrative Care & Pain Management
• Health Effects of Massage for Pain Management