1. Rally for Medical Research Hill Day Training Webinar
September 6, 2018
1:00 p.m. EDT

2. Rally for Medical Research Hill Day
Today’s Speakers Mary Lee Watts, MPH, RD American Association for Cancer Research Mary Jo Hoeksema, MPA Population Association of America Tannaz Rasouli, MPH Association of American Medical Colleges Kevin Schultze Soapbox Consulting, LLC

3. Any Questions?
Please submit your questions during the webinar using the built-in webinar question tool or
There will be approximately 20 minutes allotted at the conclusion for Q&A!

4. Welcome and Rally Overview
Mary Lee Watts, MPH, RD
Director of Government Relations and Advocacy
American Association for Cancer Research

5. Rally Hill Day Mission
To mobilize a broad coalition of groups from the medical research advocacy community, all urging Congress to invest in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to improve health, spur more progress, inspire more hope and save more lives.

6. Rallying for Medical Research Since 2013
350 partner groups
>1300 participants from 45 states
>1000 meetings on Capitol Hill
Millions of social media impressions
We’re looking to build on the momentum generated from last year’s activities to highlight the importance of an increased investment in the NIH.
In Sept 2017, more than 300 groups from across the medical research advocacy community came together to advocate for an increased investment in the NIH for the health and economic security of our nation.

7. Rally Hill Day 2018 Statistics
280 Advocates
33 states plus DC
Approximately 200 meetings with House and Senate offices – many of which are with a Member of Congress directly.
>350 partnering organizations
**Will need to update these stats closer to the Webinar

8. Rally 2018 Hill Day Calendar of Events
Rally Hill Day Training Session Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2:00 – 3:30 PM Watergate Hotel, Moretti Ballroom **All Rally participants and Team leaders are strongly encouraged to attend
Reception to Celebrate Medical Research
Wednesday, Sept. 12, 4:30 – 7:00 PM Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room G50
*Dress Code for all events is business attire*
Encourage participants/team leaders to attend training

9. Rally Hill Day 2018 Calendar of Events
Rally Hill Day Kick-Off Breakfast Thursday. Sept. 13, 7:30 – 9:00 AM The Watergate Hotel, Moretti Ballroom **The group will convene for a photo following the breakfast Rally Hill Day Congressional Meetings Thursday Sept. 13, 9:30 – 5:00 PM Capitol Hill “Base camp” room: Cannon 121 (House side)
**Shuttles will be available to take participants to Capitol Hill following the training and kick-off breakfast

10. Online Communications and Social Media Outreach
Rally for Medical Research Website:
“Resources” Page – “Hill Day Materials”
Grassroots Toolkit Rally Style Guide Sample Action Alert Social Media Opportunities
Facebook Page:
Twitter
Hashtag: #RallyMedRes
“I Rally For _________” selfie campaign
The slides will also be posted and accessible on the Rally website after the webinar.

11. Social Media Outreach
Last year there were more than 17 million impressions

12. Rally Hill Day National Day of Action
Call your representative using the action alert:
Rallyformedicalresearch.org/pages/getinvolved.aspx
your members of Congress
Tweet members of Congress with a message or post on the member’s Facebook page
September 22 is designated the National Day of Action
Highlight the suggested timeline for coordinated action
Sample Op-eds and Blog Posts can be foud

13. Capitol Hill Update Mary Jo Hoeksema, MPA Director, Government Affairs
Population Association of America/
Association of Population Centers

14. Washington, DC: A Challenging Political Environment
Mid-term Elections
Continued partisan bickering and posturing
Divisive public policy issues

15. NIH Funding: Building on Progress
KEEPING UP THE MOMENTUM
Thanks to three straight years of at least $2 billion increases provided by Congress, the NIH is able to support more groundbreaking science that will help us tackle our most challenging health problems – but we can’t afford to stop now. Robust, sustained and predictable increases are necessary to keep up with the scientific opportunities that exist today.

16. Momentum for Medical Research Funding
Funding for medical research is a bipartisan issue!
Since FY 2015, Congress has increased the NIH budget by $7 billion (23%).
The 21st Century Cures Act (2016) designates $4.8 billion to the NIH in FY 2017 – 2026 for targeted initiatives.
On August 23, 2018, the Senate passed a Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 bill that included $39.1 billion for NIH, an additional $2 billion over current levels.

17. Next Steps?
The Senate worked through most of August, when Congress is typically on recess, and has now passed 9 out of 12 appropriations bills. The House now has some catching up to do.
The House and Senate are headed to a conference committee to work out differences between their versions of the spending bills.
While Congress has made significantly more progress to date on FY 2019 spending than in recent years, it is still likely that it will need to pass a continuing resolution, at least for some departments.

18. A Busy Fall for Congress
Continued negotiations on FY 2019 spending bills
Supreme Court nomination being considered in the Senate
Did we mention mid-term elections?

19. Other Congressional Priorities
Passage of all 12 FY 2019 appropriations bills
Immigration reform
Opioid addiction legislation

20. Important Time to Highlight Value of Medical Research
House is poised to adopt the Senate funding level for NIH, but the work is not done.
In a time of deep political divisions, medical research is a unifying issue.
The Rally for Medical Research Hill Day will be an important opportunity for the NIH advocacy community to underscore the need for increased funding for the agency.

21. Rally Hill Day Message and Key Talking Points
Tannaz Rasouli
Senior Director, Public Policy and Outreach
Association of American Medical Colleges

22. Our Message to Congress
Robust, sustained and predictable funding annual increases for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) are REQUIRED if we are to continue to catalyze new therapies, drive science, accelerate innovation, support local economies, and bring hope to millions of patients.

23. NIH 1-PAGER

24. Rally for Medical Research Hill Day Key Messaging Points
Thank Members of Congress for providing a $3 billion increase for the NIH in FY 2018, and for their continued efforts to make funding medical research a national priority.
For the Senate:
Thank Senators for passing a bill with a $2 billion increase for NIH in FY 2019.
For the House:
Ask members of the House of Representatives to include the Senate-passed funding level of $39.1 billion (a $2 billion increase) for NIH in the final FY 2019 appropriations bill.
Urge all Members of Congress to complete work on the FY 2019 appropriations in a timely manner. Continuing resolutions are disruptive to the medical research system, introduce uncertainty into the process, and impose unnecessary delays on the pathway to cures.

25. What to Expect and Hill Day Logistics
Kevin Schultze
Vice President of Congressional Relations
Soapbox Consulting, Inc.

28. 2. 1. 3. 4. 5.

31. Questions/Comments/Needs?
Kevin Schultze VP, Congressional Relations Soapbox Consulting (202)

32. Q & A
Thank you for participating in the Rally for Medical Research Hill Day!