Your Child's Health/Health Alert



	ll politics is local,” it’s been said. But after elections, do you ever wonder what your two U.S. senators and your one member of the U.S. House of Representatives do when they start working on issues in Washington? As a parent, do you wonder if children’s health issues are a priority in Congress? Good news! These answers are right at your fingertips. With just a few computer mouse clicks, you can walk the halls of Congress, virtually, on the Internet. (With just a few more clicks, you could send a fax to your representatives expressing your views if you wanted to.) Start by visiting the Legislative Action Center of the National Association of Children’s Hospitals (the public policy affiliate of the National Association of Children’s Hospitals and Related Institutions). Go to www.childrenshospitals.net and click on public policy. Once in the Legislative Action Center, you can enter your home ZIP code from the Elected Officials link to find your members of Congress. You’ll also see their pictures, contact and background information, and legislative committee appointments. The names of key staff members and links to current legislative alerts also appear here. The Children’s Health Issues link provides information important to children and children’s hospitals. The links for a bill will give you a summary and background, any amendments, status of the legislation and key co-sponsors with party designations. Taking action really does count! Through the recent collective efforts of children’s hospitals from across the United States who rallied thousands of employees, parents, friends and supporters, more than 15,000 faxes were sent to 350 members of Congress regarding particular legislation that eventually passed.