Registration is now open for the 2024 Coverage for SCD Summit!

Learn More and Register

Policy Forum

Image

Sick Cells’ annual Policy Forum brings together active Ambassadors and other members of the community to collaborate and build a stronger community. The virtual, 2-day event will take place every year in March. 

  • Day One hosts the educational sessions during the Advocacy Training Day. The forum focuses on federal and state advocacy trends and provides an opportunity to collectively discuss concrete solutions to remove barriers in policy making. 
  • Day Two hosts the Virtual Hill Day. Advocates have the opportunity to meet with their legislators and educate them about sickle cell disease issues and recommendations

What to Expect

Sick Cells works hard to ensure the Policy Forum and Hill Day provides the most interactive experience for our attendees. Sick Cells will offer several tools and features in order to assist in the preparedness and efficiency of our Ambassadors:

1) Mail-out Materials. Sick Cells mails attendees a welcome packet containing the following hand-outs for the event: Branded Agenda, Presenter Bios, Federal Priorities One-Pager, and advocacy toolkits.

2) Virtual Hill Day platform. Sick Cells offers a web-based platform for Ambassadors to use during their virtual Hill Day appointments. Ambassadors can access their schedules online, receive notifications and reminders, and connect with ease to the virtual meeting room.

  • Prior to the meetings, Ambassadors can customize talking points to refer to during meetings, read legislator bios and information, and upload one-pagers or materials to be shared with congressional staff.
  • During the meetings, our Sick Cells team will be able to chat with Ambassadors and take notes.

3) SCD Federal Priorities One-pager. Every year Sick Cells develops a one-pager for Ambassadors to present to federal policymakers. Sick Cells works in collaboration with the Sickle Cell Disease Association of America (SCDAA) and other SCD advocacy groups to outline national federal priorities for the SCD community. 

Previous Successes

Read about the successes from our previous years: