It is impossible to tell the story of Grain Fertility without mentioning RESOLVE Federal Advocacy Day and the impact it has had on founder Joe Cody. When Joe and his wife were in the middle of their nearly 4 year IVF journey, Advocacy Day became a way for Joe to try to take back some semblance of control during a process that was very much out of his control. It was actually the therapist that Joe and his wife were seeing that recommended Advocacy Day as a way for Joe to use his background in government relations, policy development, and communications to help others who were struggling with family building.
What is Federal Advocacy Day?
RESOLVE is greatly involved in advocating for the family building community on both the federal and state level, helping lawmakers understand the practice of fertility treatment, the barriers to care that exist, and promoting policies that help ensure access to these important family building technologies is available to all. One of the main drivers of this support is through Federal Advocacy Day, where hundreds of patients, professionals, and allies all come together to meet with their legislators to ask for their support.
This year, over 1000 people signed up for Advocacy Day, representing all 50 states, making it the largest virtual gathering of fertility patients in RESOLVE's history. Over the course of the day, these advocates met with all 100 Senators and hundreds of Representatives and told their stories. The goal of Advocacy Day is to thank those Members of Congress who have supported legislation that impacts family building and ask those who have yet to support the legislation to join the others who have made their support for IVF known and ensure they are working to protect IVF.
What Issues Are Your Advocating For?
This year, in light of the Alabama Supreme Court's recent ruling that threatened IVF access, RESOLVE has actively worked with Senator Tammy Duckworth to get a vote on her legislation, The Access to Family Building Act of 2024, S. 3612/ H.R. 7056. This bill would establish a statutory right to access IVF and other Assisted Reproductive Technology services and ensure they remain legal and available everywhere in the US.
In addition to this important legislation, RESOLVE supports a number of other bills designed to help improve access to care for service members, veterans, and federal workers. Bills also hope to improve access to family building services for those who pursue adoption through tax credits and prohibiting discrimination by adoption services.
These bills include:
All of these bills have a central theme that echoes with Grain Fertility's mission: anyone struggling to build a family deserves access to all family building options.
What Is Advocacy Day Like?
Our day kicked off at 8 am with an inspiring speech from RESOLVE staff, including the CEO and Chair of the Board of Directors. The highlight though was a conversation with Senator Tammy Duckworth, lead sponsor of legislation RESOLVE supports and an IVF mom herself. She talked about her own journey, how she thought she was too old to have children after serving in the military and suffering a service related injury in Iraq, and how inspiring members of the community are.
From there, advocates work with their state delegations to prepare for and attend their meetings. Below is the schedule Joe had.
In these meetings, advocate tell their stories and help to inform Members of Congress and their staff about the importance of protecting IVF and ensuring access to care. Sometimes you even get to meet with the member, which is always a surprise and something first time Advocates love experiencing. Although it seems overwhelming and nerve wracking, it is quite the opposite. You are surrounded by others who know what you are going through and the support is inspiring.
How Can You Get Involved?
We understand taking time out of your day to meet with your Members of Congress is not for everyone and that is ok. Luckily, there are multiple other ways you can get involved.
You can send a letter to your Member of Congress through RESOLVE's easy to use system. Simply enter your name and address, and they will send a letter on your behalf, expressing your support!
You can sign up for RESOLVE's Advocacy Network (RAN) to get alerts with other ways to stay involved.
Tell your doctors about RESOLVE and ask their clinic and staff to support RESOLVE and get involved in Advocacy Day in the future.
You can simply tell your story on social media and voice support for others who are struggling with infertility. You would be surprised how many people are silently struggling and knowing someone else out there is going through the same thing and willing to share their story is a source of strength for so many.
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