Policy Speakout

In an effort to extend the health care policy discussion, each month the Colorado Health Foundation invites a different health care policy expert to share their views on a single issue. The views presented by these experts do not necessarily reflect those of the Colorado Health Foundation.

Dave Myers is the CEO of Metro Community Provider Network and has been with the organization since 1993. Prior to his work with MCPN, Mr. Myers was the director of operations with Plan de Salud del Valle and a journalist in Mexico City. Mr. Myers holds a degree in journalism with training as a nutritionist and has been recognized as the Humanitarian of the Year by the Aurora Chamber of Commerce.

Advocacy: Our Obligation to Represent Those without a Voice

At the Metro Community Provider Network (MCPN), a network of community health centers, our voice is a powerful weapon and advocacy is the tool to use it. My colleague, Dr. Barry Martin, spoke in a previous issue of Health Elevations about how state and federal funding policies impact our organization’s ability to stay afloat.

Our response to important policy issues has been advocacy – telling the story, getting the word out, letting people know about the issues. These are all tools in the arsenal of weapons for nonprofits. And yet, it’s always amazing to me that there are still those who are timid and unsure of whether or not they’re allowed to speak up. 

These approaches need to be done wisely. Nonprofits cannot support candidates and need to make sure they comply with tax laws. Aside from these limitations, nonprofits are not only are free, but I would argue, are obligated to advocate on behalf of their causes and constituents.

We have had great success in our efforts to make our voices heard here at MCPN.  With over 800 advocates in our advocacy database, MCPN is able to muster support within a matter of hours on a specific issue or vote coming up before the legislature. Our patients are the best advocates. They live the life of the medically uninsured and can tell their story the best. But we also find advocates in the community, schools, partner agencies and among the elected officials themselves.

In our recent Call to Action, we encouraged legislators to look for revenue solutions to the state budget crisis. One-hundred forty messages went out to 43 percent of the state legislators asking them to eliminate tax exemptions. The bulk of the messages arrived in the legislators’ inboxes within twenty-four hours of our call. That’s powerful. Other successful Call to Actions have been launched as we fought state budget cuts and fought for expanding Medicaid and Child Health Plan Plus and encouraged Congress to reauthorize health insurance for children.

This kind of grassroots advocacy is not without its commitment. Advocates come and go. In the recent Call to Action, 40 percent of the respondents were new to our system. It’s imperative to have an on-going program of enrolling new advocates. We enroll new advocates by setting up “advocacy tables” in our clinics and by distributing enrollment cards at meetings.

In closing, it’s important to understand that democracy can only work when the people are heard. The voices of nonprofits speak loudest for those who oftentimes cannot speak for themselves. Be the voice!

Dave Myers
President and CEO