Advocacy

Throughout the year, WAFP staff and family physician members actively participate in healthcare policy discussions with legislators, state agency staff, and community partners.

Specific to the legislative session, we'll update the Bill Tracker so you can see the bills of interest to family medicine.

Bill Tracker

Legislative Priorities

We encourage you to become familiar with the Academy’s legislative agenda and stay up to date on the latest developments through our regular legislative updates.

With an emphasis on health equity, in the 2025 session the Washington Academy of Family Physicians will:

Support legislation reinforcing the essential role of primary care in the physical and mental health of Washington residents, including any to:

  • Increase investment in primary care as a proportion of overall health spending.
  • Expand family physicians’ capacity to better meet patients’ health needs through team-based care.
  • Align payment models across payers (i.e., insurance companies, Medicaid, Medicare) to simplify billing for physicians, allowing more patient time during the workday.
  • Reduce the legal, administrative, and tax burden imposed on family physicians.

Support legislation improving Washington residents’ access to high-quality primary care services, including any to:

  • Improve access to quality, affordable health care coverage.
  • Invest in family medicine to ensure Washington has physicians who are ready, willing, and able to serve patients in Washington.
  • Sustain Community Health Centers, Rural Health Clinics, and Teaching Health Centers.
  • Enable broader use of telehealth when doing so strengthens the patient and physician relationship.
  • Ensure access to reproductive health care, including abortion care.

Support legislation addressing health-related social needs and strengthening the public health system, including any to:

  • Prioritize treatment instead of punishment for people with substance use disorder.
  • Sufficiently fund core public health services and support local public health officers and science-based governance of local boards of health.
  • Address racism, firearm safety, and climate change as public health crises.
  • Integrate services to address health related social needs (such as nutrition assistance and housing supports) into primary care.

Oppose legislation diminishing the role of or reducing access to family physicians, or making it harder to maintain such a practice, including any to:

  • Impose inappropriate new requirements on family physicians, including mandated additional training or continuing education.
  • Reduce quality or increase risks to patients.
  • Reduce funding to crucial primary care education or safety net health care programs.