Portrait of an Activist: Laura Willingham

When she is not busy taking care of two young daughters or working as the ACA's new National Peer Network (NPN) consultant, Laura Willingham might be answering a call from one of the support group leaders or volunteers in Region L. Willingham is one of the ACA's regional representatives, overseeing and assisting members in Washington, Montana, Oregon, Idaho, and Alaska. Willingham Willingham is an ACA-certified peer visitor and peer visitor trainer. She is also the leader of the Washington state campaign for prosthetic coverage. A group of patients and activists came together to work with the ACA on a prosthetic coverage bill in the summer of 2006. Since then, Willingham has been leading the committee in its efforts to build a parity campaign. Last year, the committee focused on recruiting members and raising awareness about the need for parity legislation. It also held a successful statewide petition drive. In an effort to strengthen the Washington campaign, Willingham worked to identify partners who were willing to sign on and endorse the parity bill. Having other organizations on record in support of the legislation demonstrates that a broad range of groups agree with the policy and helps to influence lawmakers. Recently, the Washington campaign has put a lot of its energy into identifying a sponsor to introduce a bill in the 2008 session. Rep. Christine Rolfes, the assistant majority whip, and Rep. Mike Sells are coordinating with the committee to get the bill introduced. The committee is also gearing up to support the federal parity bill, which will be introduced in 2008. It has members on the two key House committees-House Energy & Commerce and House Education & Labor. Sen. Patty Murray is also on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP). The Washington campaign committee comprises a strong group of activists from throughout the state, but they owe a great deal of their success to Willingham's strong leadership. Morgan Sheets is the national advocacy director for ACA's Action Plan for People with Limb Loss (APPLL) initiative. She can be reached at APPLL@amputee-coalition.org . For more information, visit www.amputee-coalition.org/advocacy/index.html

Portrait of an Activist: Laura Willingham

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Portrait of an Activist: Laura Willingham

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