Advocacy Toolkit
The Advocacy Toolkit is a package of educational resources to assist SHEA members with becoming effective advocates on behalf of the society’s policy agenda. This toolkit is an exclusive SHEA member benefit to enable advocates to be effective in advancing SHEA’s mission, stay informed on the most critical or priority “asks” for the profession, and to better understand the priority policy issues that are top-of-mind for members and society leaders.
Action Alerts
- TAKE ACTION: Support robust FY 2026 funding for CDC
Urge your federal elected officials to support the inclusion of $11.581 billion for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s programs in the FY 2026 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies appropriations bill.
- TAKE ACTION: Ask Congress to prioritize funding for antimicrobial resistance
Antimicrobial resistance is one of the most pressing public health crises we face today—both nationally and globally. Encouragingly, past investments in the CDC have yielded measurable success in reversing trends for some of the most common HAIs, including those caused by MDROs. urge you to contact your Congressional delegation and advocate for prioritizing antimicrobial resistance funding in the CDC’s FY 2026 budget.
- TAKE ACTION: Preserve AHRQ’s Vital Role Amid HHS Reforms
The elimination of AHRQ as an independent agency puts federally funded health services research at serious risk. AHRQ is the leading federal agency that funds the development of clinical resources, guidelines, and education informed by evidence-based research that discovers how to improve the way care is delivered to patients. The healthcare epidemiology, infection prevention, and antimicrobial stewardship communities rely on AHRQ funding to advance research in preventing the spread of antimicrobial-resistant organisms and healthcare-associated infections. Without AHRQ’s support, the future of this unique and critical research is unknown.
- TAKE ACTION: Support robust funding for the National Healthcare Safety Network
The NHSN is the main system the U.S. uses to track and respond to infections people get in healthcare settings and to monitor drug-resistant germs. It collects and analyzes data from hospitals and other facilities to help improve care, prevent infections, and respond to outbreaks. The system has recently been upgraded to use modern technology that makes data sharing faster and easier. This helps doctors and nurses spend more time with patients and focus on preventing infections. However, to keep the system running and improving, it needs more funding—which only Congress can approve.
- TAKE ACTION: Urge Congress to Support Funding for Public Health and Medical Research
Recent Executive Branch actions threaten our ability to deliver safe healthcare for all Americans. To stop further damage to our public health and medical research communities, we need every advocate to contact the Congressional representatives and urge them to fully fund our priority programs. They won’t act if they don’t hear from you, so now is the time to step up and fight for your professional community.
Stay Informed
All SHEA members receive the Policy Update every other Sunday via email. If you are a SHEA member and you are not already receiving your bi-weekly Policy Update, contact Lynne Batshon.
