Advocate for family medicine

Have a minute? Use our Speak Out tool to amplify your voice and help shape the future of family medicine.

Candid moments of Robert Graham Center's Advocacy Ambassadors and staff from RGC26.

Featured Speak Out campaigns

The Academy’s Speak Out tool enables you to directly contact your state officials, members of Congress, or the Office of the President on the issues that matter most to primary care. Make your voice heard by using our timely messaging templates, customizable for letters, emails and phone calls.

  • Support the Improving Seniors' Timely Access to Care Act

    Urge Congress to reduce prior authorization barriers and protect timely access to care for Medicare Advantage patients.

    Add your voice

  • Defend vaccine science and public health

    Call on Congress to defend science-based vaccine policy and safeguard public trust, following alarming actions by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. that dismantle expert oversight, defund critical vaccine research, and politicize public health infrastructure.

    Add your voice

  • Support the Chronic Care Management Improvement Act

    Very few eligible Medicare patients currently receive Chronic Care Management services. Congress can improve access by removing Medicare’s coinsurance barrier.

    Add your voice

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Frequently asked questions about the Speak Out tool

The AAFP’s powerful advocacy gains force when you add your voice to the fight for family medicine. Each of the Academy’s 130,000 family physicians — including you — is a constituent, a respected community member and a health care authority.

When you use the AAFP’s resources to engage with your lawmakers, you exert real influence and amplify the Academy’s work to shape federal and state policies favorable to your practices and your patients. Here’s how easy it is.

Is sending a form to my elected official really effective?

Yes! Federal and state lawmakers use these letters to gauge which issues are most urgent within their districts and, in cases of controversy, where their constituents stand. Congressional offices often have multiple full-time staff members who tally emails and letters.

Can I personalize the Speak Out tool’s form letters?

All of the AAFP’s pre-written letters available through our Speak Out tool can be edited, and we encourage your additions. Including your personal story in a letter will deepen your lawmaker’s understanding of the issue.

What can I expect when I call a congressional office?

The AAFP’s Speak Out tool provides talking points and contact information so that you can call your member(s) of Congress.

Typically, you’ll reach a staff member, who will make a note of your request. These phone calls will be very short so it is important to clearly state:

  1. That you are a constituent
  2. The purpose of your call
  3. What you would like the lawmaker to do

If you would like to speak further about the issue, you can ask to speak with the legislative aide handling that issue.

Other ways to get involved