Government & Public Affairs
Inspired by our belief that health is a human right, we partner with lawmakers at the federal level and across our seven-state footprint on policies that will improve the health and well-being of those we serve. Our advocacy is grounded in our Mission which compels us to reach beyond the walls of hospitals and care facilities to work with local, state, and national partners to advance policies designed to better serve vulnerable populations and promote justice in our communities. We also partner to promote practices and infrastructure that will sustain the planet for future generations and transform our communities for a healthier, more equitable world.
Inspired by our belief that health is a human right, our family of organizations is ready to partner with lawmakers on policies that will improve the health and well-being of those we serve.
Download a copy of our 2023-2024 Advocacy Agenda
Learn more about our priorities
- Protect the health care safety net: Protect health care coverage and provide reimbursement rates that appropriately reflect the cost of delivering care, especially for vulnerable populations.
- Reduce medication costs: Increase pharmaceutical pricing transparency and protect the 340B Drug Pricing Program, which increases access to medications for low-income patients.
- Increase access to high-quality, affordable coverage: Support expansion of Medicare Advantage and ensure the sustainability of government-sponsored health coverage.
- Promote collaborative care delivery models: Increase partnerships between payers and providers to strengthen value-based care.
- Improve hospital capacity and reduce unnecessary lengths of stay: Develop permanent solutions to address hospital capacity and ensure patients receive care in the appropriate settings.
- Protect nonprofits’ ability to care for all: Preserve tax-exempt status to support continued care for the poor and vulnerable.
- Expand innovative clinical care models: Enable more affordable, innovative care by making telehealth flexibilities permanent.
- Strengthen post-acute care services: Mitigate regulatory burden and increase resources for home and community care.
- Preserve rural health care: Enhance funding to protect rural clinics and hospitals from closures.
- Reduce regulatory burden on clinicians: Promote policies and regulatory relief to address a shrinking workforce, while enhancing patient care.
- Eliminate violence against caregivers: Support continued health care workplace safety and fund de-escalation programs to help keep caregivers safe.
- Invest in our workforce: Fund graduate medical education and clinical education programs to address clinician shortages, especially in rural and underserved communities.
- Strengthen the clinician pipeline: Bolster the future workforce by providing clinician scholarships, loan forgiveness and funding for faculty positions.
- Increase access to care: Allow clinicians to perform at the top of their license and support multi-state licensing compacts.
- Increase access to behavioral health services: Increase funding for patients in acute crisis and develop community-based solutions, especially for children and youth.
- Expand access to substance use treatment: Support policies that increase access to substance use treatment and ensure wide-spread access to opioid antagonists.
- Strengthen the public health infrastructure: Increase rapid, collaborative strategies for outreach, testing, treatment, immunization and data collection to support public health efforts.
- Promote health IT advancements: Standardize coordinated health care and protect health systems from cybersecurity threats.
- Improve coordination of care for elders: Bolster palliative care and long-term services, including the Program for All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE).
- Address racial disparities: Promote culturally competent care, increase workforce diversity, and support policies that seek to address inequities in health care delivery.
- Decrease and prevent homelessness: Increase access to affordable housing and support housing solutions for those experiencing homelessness.
- Improve stewardship of our environment: Increase funding and support policies to decarbonize the health care sector and address environmental justice and climate resiliency.
- Support common-sense gun safety: Reduce unnecessary injuries and deaths, while protecting constitutional rights.
- Seek justice for the most vulnerable: Advocate for programs that support immigrants, including creating a permanent pathway to citizenship for DACA recipients, and victims of human trafficking.
The Providence family of organizations has always participated fully in our communities as care providers and advocates for those in need—and this work is especially important during an election year. We believe that every Providence caregiver should have a say in the democratic process to create health for a better world.
Vote for Health is a voluntary educational and civic participation campaign to help mobilize voters and connect them to voting information and resources in their states ahead of federal elections, as well as many important state and local elections. In keeping with IRS rules and our own policies, Vote for Health will not include any information on or endorsements of candidate campaigns or political parties.
Elections play an important role in addressing social determinants of health that influence the wellbeing of everyone in our communities, especially vulnerable and marginalized populations. Issues such as food and housing security; access to affordable care; environmental health; and availability of technology such as telehealth can all contribute to our vision of Health for a Better World.
The Vote for Health website eases your way in becoming a participant in the process. You’ll find information on where to cast your ballot; resources to register to vote or check your voter registration status; and other helpful tools and resources.
The Vote for Health website is a quick and easy way to get registered to vote or check that your registration is up to date. Whether you vote by mail, vote early, or vote at a polling station, a current and accurate voter registration is the first step toward making a difference in your local community.
When you choose your state on the website, you’ll also see information on important health care issues where you live. In some states, you’ll also find details on ballot measures and other initiatives and proposals that will be up for a vote.
Don't let others decide what happens in your state. Use your vote to be an agent for social change. Help ensure the future of health is inclusive, just and fair for all.
The Vote for Health campaign is intended to be an educational resource to promote civic engagement. As a family of tax-exempt organizations, Providence does not endorse or support candidates for office.
The Providence family of organizations believes that health care is a basic human right. Medicaid is a joint federal and state program that, together with the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), provides coverage to nearly 88 million low-income Americans, including 40 million children, and is the single largest source of health coverage in the U.S. More than 22 million people across the seven western U.S. states Providence serves have Medicaid coverage. Medicaid is part of the essential safety net which serves the most vulnerable Americans.
Medicaid is a lifeline and a safety net.
You might be surprised to learn who is covered by Medicaid. Read about families and individuals who needed help getting care in the past, or who depend on Medicaid now: Meet The Many Faces of Medicaid.
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Medicaid Myths & Facts: Ryan Keay, M.D.
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Many Faces of Medicaid: Medicaid’s role in the opioid epidemic
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Many Faces of Medicaid: Cee J and Shar Jackson’s story
Providence’s more than 165-year legacy of investing in its communities is rooted in a tradition of caring for those in need, with compassion and in partnership with the people we serve.
Today, health care is experiencing significant challenges nationally, including te impacts of inflation, a national health care labor shortage, delayed reimbursement from payors that isn’t keeping pace with costs, global supply chain disruptions and financial market weakness. Despite these headwinds, the Providence family of organizations continues to step up to meet growing community need, while strengthening our Mission.
To achieve our vision of health for a better world, Providence combines a long-standing commitment to improving community health with expertise in high-quality care to create healthy communities and promote health equity.
Our community benefit programs are vital to this vision. Each year, Providence ministries and affiliates identify unmet needs and respond with strategic investments in community health. These investments include free and discounted care for the uninsured and underinsured (charity care), the unpaid costs of Medicaid and other means-tested government programs, along with proactive community health improvement programs and partnerships and subsidized health services.
There are many other unmet needs in our communities, and we respond each year by reaching beyond hospital walls to make diverse and significant investments in community benefit. Read our community benefit report.
Government & Public Affairs partners with our internal leaders and caregivers to advocate for social and environmental justice and to address the greatest needs in our communities. Learn more about our coordinated advocacy:
Together, our team leads all advocacy on behalf of our seven-state family of organizations. We partner with lawmakers at the federal, state, and local levels on policies that promote the health and wellbeing of those we serve, with a specific focus on policies that serve the poor and vulnerable.
- Ali Santore, EVP and Chief Administrative Officer
- Jacquelyn Bombard, Chief Federal Government Affairs Officer
- Kristen Downey, Chief State Government Affairs Officer, Central Division (Eastern Washington, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, & Texas)
- Lauren Platt-McDonald, Chief State Government Affairs & Community Health Investment Officer, North Division (Alaska & Western Washington)
- Rachel Selleck, Chief State Government Affairs Officer, South Division (California)