Facilitating Connections on Capitol Hill for Public Health Advocacy: Lessons and Reflections

September 21, 2026 | Catherine Murphy

“Over the next few minutes, please work with your partner to develop a two- to three-minute pitch that describes how your state is using the Public Health Infrastructure Grant.” I felt out of my depth giving those instructions to a conference room full of ASTHO’s members, the chief health officials from their respective states (all of whom are highly educated with MDs, MPHs, and often both). Still, I wanted to ensure that they were prepared to take control of their message and advocacy — as 22 of our members participated in meetings with 55 Hill offices, including 28 meetings directly with Members of Congress. As with every Hill Day, ASTHO’s members were brilliant subject matter experts, sharing information about the work of their health departments and the federal appropriations dollars that help fund them.

While I remain passionate about public health funding, the throughline in my policy career is connecting people with their legislators and showing how government works for them. ASTHO’s Government Affairs team specializes in federal legislative advocacy and shares timely information on public health with legislators and staff. Most importantly, we work to connect our members with Capitol Hill so they can, as subject matter experts, share updates from their health departments and showcase how federal funding impacts public health in the states.

My experience in advocacy began before my tenure with ASTHO — like many, I began my Washington, D.C., career as an intern at a nonprofit learning the ropes of policy and advocacy. After that, I was fortunate to gain experience as a legislative staffer on the Hill. Acting as a connection for constituents to share their ideas and opinions with the office sparked my passion for teaching people how to engage with the legislative process. Anyone can, and should, engage with their legislators (at every level!) and the highlight of my role at ASTHO has been connecting our members and programmatic staff with the Hill.

Meetings on the Hill: Practices for Success

Over the last three years, I have honed my skills in advocacy over hundreds of meetings with lawmakers and their staff, as well as planning, scheduling, and training our members for ASTHO’s Hill Day. After experiencing Hill meetings as both a staffer and advocate, here are the most important practices I have learned.

Research the Office Beforehand

• What are the member’s priorities, especially recently, in your topic area?
• What information can you find on their website in press releases?
• What legislation do they lead or co-lead?
• On which committees do they serve?
• Further, what is the history of their staffer who handles your issue area? What issues has he/she historically worked on?

Start with a Broad Description of Your Cause and Narrow Down

Find areas of consensus. In the public health space, asking for significant increases in funding lines is easier after talking about the basics of public health: clean water, safe food, mitigating and tracking disease outbreaks, disseminating timely and targeted public health information.

Tailor Your Pitch to Their State or District

• How does federal legislation (often by way of appropriations funding) impact programs in their state? The more specific you can be, the better!
• How much money have they received?
• What is the issuing entity doing with that funding?

Follow Up

Follow up with additional information, leave-behind documents, connections to other staffers or organizations if relevant to the conversation. Always send a thank you note.

Final Reflections

Every year, ASTHO’s Government Affairs team meets with hundreds of Congressional offices and committee staffers to share updates on our work (and our members’), and to learn about Congressional work and priorities. I’m always impressed by the dedication of Congressional health staffers as health is a sizable portfolio, and staffers often cover additional legislative priorities. I am also grateful for the strong bipartisan support for public health.

Over the August recess, the Government Affairs team met with staffers from the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee. Our conversations centered around potential priorities for the subcommittee through the end of the 119th Congress, including the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act, a potential end-of-year package, and the now-passed H.R. 6500, Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2027.

As a departing ASTHO team member reflecting on my time with the organization, I am most proud of our members and staff for their critical contributions to public health advocacy on Capitol Hill. And I’m grateful that I could play a part in facilitating those connections.