Podcast: AOTA Advocacy Priorities and Predictions Under the New Administration

New policies, regulations, and laws championed by newly inaugurated President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris may impact the occupational therapy profession. In our latest podcast episode, AOTA Vice President of Federal Affairs Heather Parsons, MSOT; and AOTA Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Sharmila Sandhu, JD, outline their advocacy priorities and predictions under this new Administration.

“I think given how narrow the majority is in Congress, any policy…is going to have to have broad support, which means that we may not see big sweeping changes, like a big change to Medicare, or a big change to really any of the programs that we work in,” says Parsons. “So I find this atmosphere the kind where the Federal Affairs Team can sometimes be the most effective.”

Sandhu echoed Parsons’ positive outlook on the potential impact that the policies and ideals of Biden and Harris will have on health care in general, and specifically OT. Biden and members of his administration have been champions of the occupational therapy profession, which will present some unique opportunities.

“In terms of the Biden administration, we know that he is in the process of appointing his Cabinet. There is a new Department of Health and Human Services Administrator, [Xavier] Becerra, and our understanding is that he is friendly to many of the programs that occupational therapy practitioners provide services under,” said Sandhu.

Both Parsons’ and Sandhu’s passion for OT and the priorities of AOTA members will continue to fuel their work. In the coming months, they will focus on how the transition of being in a public health emergency to returning to normal operations will affect the advancements made in telehealth, mental and behavioral health, health disparities, and ways to diversify the profession.

Listen to our AOTA podcast for more.