Texas Well and Healthy Mimi Garcia Organizing Director Cheasty Anderson Education and Outreach Coordinator

Who are we? Organizing Lead Public Education, Policy Lead Communications Lead Story collection & “grasstops” organizing

What are we doing? Community Engagement Community Education Organizing Social Media

Organizing: The Big Idea GOALS: Engage Texans in the fight for better policies for health access in Texas TASKS: Identify and Create opportunities to mobilize our base of supporters. Work with other networks to build our base of support. TOOLS: Voter Activation Network (VAN), Online Actions/Petitions, Text alert, Advocacy pamphlet, Organizational supporter network STRATEGIES: Building support through educational workshops, working with allied organizations, becoming a communications resource.

Challenges and Solutions Challenge: Scope and capacity for a HUGE state Solution: Managing complex coalitions across the state, within cities and regions Challenge: Managing complex coalitions* Solution: Maintaining data and records on constituent organizations and their interest/politics *Sometimes solutions can be their own challenges Challenge: Too much work, too few staff Solution: prioritize. Know where to give things up, where to push. Experimenting with volunteers, interns, & trainers

Education: The Big Idea GOALS: Educate Texans about the ACA, and open discourse about health reform in general TASKS: Connect with disparate groups across the state (politically active or not), keep curriculum flexible and adaptable TOOLS: Education and organizing pamphlet, blog, Train the Trainer STRATEGIES: Travel. All. The. Time.

Advocacy/Education Tool

Blog: “Ask Cheasty”

Challenges and Solutions Challenge: varied literacy levels, low health literacy Solution: Develop materials that are especially flexible, a program that can be simplified or complicated, and bilingual materials Challenge: HUGE state, one person Solution: Train the Trainers, Skype, health action calls, video “one-pagers,” webinars, etc. Challenge: Staying strategic vs. responding to demand Solution: Targeted outreach based on organizer’s power analysis. Getting easier now that we have greater name recognition.

Case Study: SCOTUS reaction Rapid response plan Communications Public Mobilization Public Education Challenges: Rally without a date, lots of work means need for clear roles, uncertainty Solutions: Utilizing groups with mobilizable base, new technology of text messaging, clearly prepared plan and roles, multiple contingency plans

Outcomes Building our List Creating New Coalitions/Alliances Social Media and Technology Multiple Avenues of Engagement Media attention: State, regional, and now national Medical Loss Ratio Rate Review Train the Trainer

New Challenges How to build avenues of messaging on health care reform for new (not necessarily enthusiastic) audiences Now even Republicans are getting interested, post- SCOTUS Large number of Freshman Tea Partiers in TX Lege Legislative session – Gov wants even more budget cuts, lots of educating to do for members re: Medicaid/Medicare, health care in Texas Galvanizing constituent activism in key district for Lege w/limited lead time between elections and state of session.

Thank you! Mimi Garcia Cheasty Anderson On On Facebook: