By Marcia Stedman, HCFA-WA Board President
Over the past year, everyone has learned new ways of surviving, communicating, and maybe even thriving in our COVID-altered universe. For HCFA-WA, it’s been a bit of a roller-coaster.
From the heights of our legislative wins – passage of our “core four” bills addressing the high cost of insulin and other pharmaceutical drugs with bipartisan support plus other important healthcare bills – to the low of the Governor’s COVID-forced veto of the Drug Affordability Board bill, we have kept a steady focus on the deliberations of the Universal Health Care Work Group this year. May the results reflect the passion that all of us have put into this effort!
Once the 2020 Legislative Session ended, we turned our attention to communicating with our members and allies, as well as the general public as we:
- re-energized our Communications Committee with new leadership and additional members
- rebuilt our HCFA-WA website
- strengthened our social media reach by activating our Instagram account and increasing our Twitter and Facebook presence
- saw articles featuring HCFA-WA members in media such as Crosscut and the Seattle Times
- had Op-eds published statewide, from the Spokane Spokesman-Review to the Everett Herald, the Nisqually Valley News and the Tacoma News Tribune
- continued to publish timely articles and calls to action via our monthly e-bulletins, driving hundreds of people to sign up and provide public comments to the Universal Health Care Work Group
- continued to produce the excellent quarterly Newsletter under the auspices of the Education Fund
- presented our Annual Meeting virtually for the first time, via Zoom webinar with increased state-wide participation.
- produced a glossy 8-page pamphlet for fundraising and outreach purposes
- ramped up our GiveBIG profile and saw the number of donors climb by more than 300% and donations increase by more than 1,000%
We strengthened our internal organization as we:
- revised and strengthened our Bylaws, the governing document of our organization
- drafted our Equity statement
- actively sought to diversify our Board
Now, we’re getting ready for the 2021 Legislative Session and you can help!
- Call, write, or meet virtually with your Legislators to urge their support for legislation that promotes publicly-funded universal healthcare; organize others in your Legislative District to join you and us
- Find venues and schedule presentations by our speakers bureau; be a member of our speakers bureau
- Raise funds to support our lobbying and organizational work
- Provide technical help with website, social media and virtual meetings
Let us know how you want to help.*
*We are Zoom-friendly, and all events remain virtual for the time being.