Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Coalition Kick-Off


So, the coalition is off and running. Thank you to Lorrie Kaplan, Executive Director of ACNM, for opening the meeting with hope and willingness to "Stand in the present, walk in the future." Representatives from MANA (Gera and I), NACPM (Mary Lawlor), ACNM (Lorrie, Tina, Eileen, Patrick, Monica), Childbirth Connections (Maureen Corry), AWHONN (Cathy Ruhl and Kerri Wade), Amnesty International (Nan Strauss and Christina Finch) and AABC (Karen Fennel) were at this historic meeting. The presidents of MANA, ACNM, and AWHONN were all present via phone.
We talked with guarded optimism about models of coalitions that have worked, using the MAMA campaign organizational structure as a working example. Patrick Cooney, ACNM lobbyist, gave an overview of possible scenarios that may unfold over the next 3 or 4 months in regards to the Roybal-Allard legislation.
The task for each organization is to go back to their respective organizations and discuss possible improvements or challenges with the bill. MANA and ACNM, as well as the other orgs, will try to find common ground as we discuss the specifics of the bill.

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