*In preparation for the MHCA Day at the Capital on March 6, we need you to set up an appointment ASAP with your State Senator and State Representative. A portion of our activity that day involves member meetings with elected officials, and legislators respond most quickly to requests initiated by their constituents.
CONTACTING YOUR LEGISLATORS
To find out who your representative and senators are and how to contact them, enter your home address here. A list of all your state and federal members will appear. Click on the individuals listed as “MN House” member and “MN Senate” member. For each of these individuals, clicking on their name will bring you to their member page. There should be a contact for their Legislative Assistant (LA), who will be your primary contact. Follow the step-by-step instructions below to contact the LA to set up a meeting with your Representative and Senator.
Step 1: Call the Legislative Assistant today.
- Introduce yourself as a constituent of Representative/Senator X who will be attending a Day at the Capitol March 1st to talk about home care. Ask if you can schedule a brief meeting with Representative/Senator X that week.
- Do not be surprised if the appointment is for 10 or 15 minutes.
- Confirm the format for the meeting (virtual or in-person, depending on your preference).
- The LA may ask for more information, such as what organization you are with, what you would like to discuss (issues of importance to home care), as well as your address (to confirm you are a constituent). This information will get passed along to Senator/Representative X.
- If you get voicemail, leave a message. State that you are a constituent, and include your name, the date and time frame you would like to make your appointment, and, of course, your phone number.
Step 2:
- If you left a message, give the LA 24 hours to respond, and then call again.
- Send an email with your request for a meeting immediately after the second voice message.
Step 3:
- Once the appointment is scheduled, send a follow-up email to the LA.
- Send a personal email to the LA, thanking him or her for the appointment and reiterating the topic of the meeting (issues of importance to home care).
- Make sure your contact information is on the email.
- Be sure to complete our meeting form (scroll to the bottom).
KEY POINTS FOR YOUR MEETING
Your
meeting will likely be 15-20 minutes in length, meaning you should have your
talking points planned out ahead of time to be efficient and effective.
Mix personal stories with facts and data. The stories make your meeting memorable, and the data emphasizes the importance of our work.
Topics and tips for your meeting:
- Home Care is essential and is a quality option for necessary services
- Many people prefer to receive cares in the privacy of their residence and home care makes that happen
- From birth through end-of-life, home care serves all types of clients and their needs
- 2023 Legislative Priorities focus on:
- Increased reimbursement for underfunded or non-funded home care services (care evaluations, care coordination and homemaker services)
- Increase base rates for home care
- PCA Rate Reform
VIRTUAL MEETING TIPS
Legislators are open to virtual meetings if in-person is not an option and will generally accept your invitation to use Zoom, Microsoft Teams, or other platforms. If you have not arranged a virtual meeting before, you can learn more:
Free Zoom Account
Getting Started with Microsoft Teams
6 Tips for Virtual Meetings
If you are new to virtual meetings, or new to acting as the host of a virtual meeting, practice ahead of time. Test your Internet connection and/or phone signal by video chatting a family member or friend.
Try to make sure your background is not distracting. If you are taking the meeting in front of a window, see if you can close the curtains or blinds, or cover the window so you do not appear as a silhouette on screen.
Before the meeting begins, silence your cell phone and place it out of view. If you live with others, make sure they know to give you privacy and stay quiet during your meeting.
Write down what you want to say ahead of time, so you don’t forget anything. Keep an eye on the clock – don’t run out of time before you make all of your points!
Share your story with your personal perspective – explain how you, or someone you love, has benefited from home care. If possible, compare the situation with what would be needed if you didn’t have home care services.
If several people plan to join the call, decide who will say what, and assign a leader to keep things running on time.
INVOLVING CLIENTS
Legislators need to hear from people who receive and benefit from home care services, too! Help your clients be part of our advocacy efforts through:
Sharing this Advocacy Guide which outlines and explains their involvement to email or hold a virtual meeting (see 6 Tips for Virtual meetings, above) If they are up for it, have them create a short (less than 3 minutes) video about how home care impacts their lives, which can be shared with officials and/or on Social Media - what a powerful (and memorable) way to share a story! Encourage them to promote the benefits of home care on their personal Social Media accounts - and share on your agency account, too!
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