February 19, 1999

In addition to taking in the sights and sounds of Washington, D.C., during APA's 1999 annual meeting, your stay in the nation's capital provides you with an unprecedented opportunity to help set government policy affecting your practice and your patients by visiting your members of Congress.

Here's your chance to bring your local grass-roots concerns directly to the U.S. Congress. This important public-policy activity is being spearheaded by Eliot Sorel, M.D., president-elect of Washington Psychiatric Society, APA's Joint Commission on Government Relations (JCGR) and Joint Commission on Public Affairs (JCPA), and their respective APA staffs.

"The location of the 1999 annual meeting in Washington, D.C., this year is an opportunity we can't afford to miss," said Nada Stotland, M.D., chair of the JCPA. "We need as many APA members as possible to call on their legislators while at the annual meeting."

Ronald Shellow, M.D., chair of the JCGR, echoed those comments. "Local constituent psychiatrist input is absolutely vital to APA's national efforts on parity, privacy, and patient protection legislation. Just an hour of your time can make a tremendous difference."

If you are interested in participating in this initiative, you should write in advance to your members of Congress asking for an appointment during your stay at the annual meeting.

If you don't know the names and addresses of your members of Congress, you can obtain the information by going to APA's Web site at and clicking on "Public Policy Advocacy."

After you have scheduled your appointments with your legislators, contact APA's Division of Government Relations (DGR) and your local district branch or state association. APA is working on arrangements for transportation to and from the Washington Convention Center and thus needs to know how many and when APA members will be traveling to Capitol Hill.

DGR will produce a one-page statement that you can leave with your members of Congress, allowing you to deliver a unified and consistent message regarding APA's position on mental health care. The briefing statements will be available at the DGR booth in APA's Member Resource Center in the Exhibit Hall of the Washington Convention Center and at daily early-morning briefings conducted by DGR staff. You can also stop by the DGR booth after your Capitol Hill appointments and send follow-up letters from DGR's computers.

Stotland urges you to bring your camera with you so you can have your photo taken with your legislators. When you return home, you can ask your local newspaper and district branch newsletter to publish the photos and run brief stories about your Capitol Hill visits. Such publicity "pleases the legislators, keeps APA in the public eye, and gives our members a tangible connection to APA legislative efforts," commented Stotland.

DGR can be reached at (202) 682-6060; e-mail: jwalsh@psych.org.