The 2014–2015 ACCP-ASHP-VCU Congressional Healthcare Policy Fellow, Tracy Rupp, Pharm.D., RD, MPH, BCPS, of Durham, North Carolina, recently began her Capitol Hill placement, serving on the staff of Senator Robert Casey (D-PA). First elected in 2006, Senator Casey serves on the Senate Finance Committee and the Senate Health, Education, and Labor Committee.

The Congressional Healthcare Policy Fellow Program is a collaborative effort of ACCP, the School of Pharmacy at the Medical College of Virginia/Virginia Commonwealth University, and the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists.

The program provides a unique health care policy learning experience that is designed to demonstrate the value of pharmacy-government interaction and to facilitate practical contributions to the effective use of scientific and pharmaceutical knowledge in government policy development. Fellows spend a month with each of the professional organizations as members of their respective government and professional affairs staff. In November of the fellow year, they begin working in a legislative environment requiring health care input on the staff of an individual senator or representative or a relevant congressional committee.

The program is an enriching opportunity for the Fellow to develop legislative evaluation and policy development skills, improve research and writing skills, and integrate practical policy experience with theory. The Fellow will be expected to undertake a wide array of responsibilities, including researching and preparing briefs on health care issues; assisting with policy decisions; drafting memoranda; and planning, organizing, and carrying out program and management objectives. The congressional office (personal or committee) placement should ideally be with one of the committees that predominantly deal with health issues such as the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee and Senate Finance Committee or the House Ways and Means or Energy and Commerce committees.

Applications for 2015–2016 Pharmacy Healthcare Policy Fellow Program

Interested candidates should visit the Pharmacy Healthcare Policy Fellow program’s Web site for more information and instruction on submitting an application.