Strengthening Consumer Voices, One State at a Time

Alabama Arise, founded in 1994, is a statewide nonprofit, nonpartisan coalition of 150 congregations and community groups and some 1,400 individuals united in their belief that low-income people are suffering because of state policy decisions. Through Arise, groups and individuals join to gether to promote state policies that improve the lives of low-income Alabamians.

The Alaska Primary Care Association (APCA) is a not-for-profit membership organization whose mission is to create healthy communities in Alaska through the support of vibrant and effective Community Health Centers. APCA works with Health Centers and many partners to promote, expand and optimize access to primary care for all Alaskans. APCA is able to provide a broad range of member services from technical assistance, policy surveillance and dissemination, to health policy analysis and education, to group purchasing benefits. 

The mission of Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families is to ensure that all children and their families have the resources and opportunities to lead healthy and productive lives and to realize their full potential. Their mission is to serve as a voice for children at the Arkansas State Capitol and in Washington, D.C.; gather and analyze data to support public policy that serves all children and families; organize coalitions of diverse groups to drive change.

The Living Affected Corporation (LACorp) is a charitable, grass root organization founded in 2008 to promote empowerment and inclusion while decreasing health disparities through education and advocacy in marginalized communities. LACorp will address but is not limited to general, mental health, reproductive justice, homelessness, poverty reduction, and the pursuit of justice and equality among the LGBTQ community, its organizations and allies. 

Health Access California is the statewide health care consumer advocacy coalition, advocating for the goal of quality, affordable health care for all Californians. 

Colorado Consumer Health Initiative (CCHI) is a statewide, non-partisan, non-profit coalition of organizational and individual members, representing well over 500,000 Coloradans. CCHI acts as a representative of the policy and advocacy priorities of our members at the legislature and in the community to influence and shape effective health care policy on behalf of consumers.

The mission of Connecticut Voices for Children is to promote the well-being of all of Connecticut's young people and their families by advocating for strategic public investments and wise public policies. Connecticut Voices for Children advances its mission through high quality research and analysis, strategic communications, citizen education, and development of the next generation of advocates.

Georgians for a Healthy Future's mission is to build and mobilize a unified voice, vision, and leadership to achieve a healthy future for all Georgians. They provide a strong voice for Georgia consumers and communities on the health care issues and decisions that impact their lives.

EverThrive Illinois, formerly the Illinois Maternal and Child Health Coalition, works to improve the health of women, children, and families over the lifespan through community engagement, partnerships, policy analysis, education, and advocacy.

The Consumer State Advocacy Project-Illinois (CSAP-IL) is grounded in the belief that everyone deserves access to affordable, comprehensive, culturally appropriate health care - no matter their income, race, ethnicity, gender, place of origin, or immigration status. CSAP-IL will activate its grassroots, consumer advocacy, and policy partners to advocate for affordable coverage options for the state’s remaining uninsured. The Shriver Center on Poverty Law (Shriver Center) will lead the project in partnership with the Illinois Coalition on Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR), EverThrive Illinois, and the Worker’s Center for Racial Justice (WCRJ). Together they will collectively elevate health and racial justice, centering the project’s work so that Black, Indigenous, people of color (BIPOC) and immigrant communities will drive the policy solutions to increase access to affordable health care.

The mission of the Kansas Health Consumer Coalition is to advocate for affordable, accessible, and quality health care in Kansas.

The Louisiana Budget Project, in partnership with Louisiana Community Health Outreach Network (LACHON) and Southwest Louisiana Area Health Education Center (SWLAHEC) will lead an effort to raise public awareness about the roles and benefits of community health workers, who serve a vital and under-appreciated role in addressing social determinants of health in Louisiana. Deeply embedded in their communities, these public health professionals help connect people in underserved areas with health care services and other community supports. The campaign will build political power and advocacy skills among community health workers and work to include community health workers as a covered benefit in the Medicaid program.

The Louisiana Consumer Healthcare Coalition works for the creation of a consumer-centered health care system that provides comprehensive, affordable, accessible, culturally competent, high quality care and consumer education for everyone, especially the most vulnerable. We work to achieve this through multi-disciplinary, collaborative efforts in public policy, advocacy, education and service to consumers in Louisiana.

Maryland Citizen's Health Initiative's mission is to educate Marylanders about feasible and effective ways to expand access to quality affordable health insurance for all residents of our state.

OutFront Minnesota’s mission is to create a state where lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people are free to be who they are, love who they love, and live without fear of violence, harassment or discrimination. They are driven by the slogan, Leading Minnesota Toward LGBTQ Equality in which they provide leadership by delivering programs and services to Minnesota's LGBTQ and allied communities in the areas of community organizing, public policy, anti-violence, law, education and training.  

TakeAction Minnesota works to make change that matters to Minnesotans. TakeAction does this by organizing individuals to lead in their local communities, building dynamic coalitions that criss-cross the state, training and educating people to engage in public action.

Mississippi Center for Justice is a nonprofit, public interest law firm committed to advancing racial and economic justice.

The Mississippi Health Advocacy Program (MHAP) strives to be a strong, effective voice for improved health care for all throughout the state of Mississippi, especially those whose health is threatened by poverty, racism, malnutrition and violence. MHAP will work with communities to identify health needs and formulate strategies for change, and will research, analyze, propose and promote policies that will enhance the health status of every person, regardless of financial status.

The Alliance is a statewide non-profit advocacy organization dedicated to quality affordable health care for all.  Since 2008, the Alliance has been working to build the consumer and community leadership required to transform the American health system.  With the belief that this transformation will happen when consumers are fully engaged and have an organized voice, The Alliance works in partnership with national, state and local consumer organizations, policymakers, and foundations, providing leadership and support to change the health care system so it serves everyone – especially vulnerable members of society.

Missouri Health Care for All, Missouri Faith Voices and the Missouri Budget Project will work together to focus on Medicaid policy that integrates a race equity lens and elevates the voices of Black and African American Missourians. A major goal is to implement Medicaid expansion on time and to prevent passage of any new barriers to coverage in Medicaid, such as work requirements or budget cuts. The project will work to increase overall Medicaid advocacy across the state and representation of Black-led organizations and Black Missouri voices in the Medicaid advocacy field.

Montana Human Rights Network’s mission is to promote democratic values such as pluralism, equality and justice; challenge bigotry and intolerance; and organize communities to speak out in support of democratic principles and institutions.  The success of their mission is done by organizing local human rights groups, developing and pursuing public policy initiatives and holding public officials accountable in the area of human rights.  

Montana Women Vote is a coalition of non-profit organizations working statewide to educate and mobilize low-income women and their allies to participate in the democratic process as informed voters, policy advocates, and community leaders. Member organizations work on issues of economic justice, violence against women, human rights, reproductive rights, women’s environmental health, and homelessness. 

New Futures is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that advocates, educates and collaborates to prevent and reduce alcohol and other drug problems in New Hampshire. New Futures envisions a State and local communities where public policies support prevention, treatments and recovery oriented efforts to reduce substance misuse problems.

It is the mission of New Hampshire Voices for Health to advance public policy and systems change through advocacy and coordination of a network of consumer and advocacy organizations committed to securing quality, affordable health care for all in New Hampshire.

As the state's largest citizen watchdog coalition, New Jersey Citizen Action works to protect and expand the rights of individuals and families and to ensure that government officials respond to the needs of people rather than the interests of those with money and power.

The New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty is dedicated to advancing economic and social justice through education, advocacy and litigation. We work with low-income New Mexicans to improve living conditions, increase opportunities and protect the rights of people living in poverty. Through Roadmaps to Health Community Grants, the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty and its partners will help agricultural workers get the pay they are entitled to and ensure that the DWS is properly enforcing state labor laws.

The mission of Community Service Society is to identify problems which create a permanent poverty class in New York City, and to advocate the systemic changes required to eliminate such problems. CSS will focus on enabling, empowering and promoting opportunities for poor families and individuals to develop their full potential, to contribute to society, and to realize social, economic and political opportunities. 

Raising Women’s Voices (RWV) is a national initiative working to make sure women’s voices are heard and women’s concerns are addressed as policymakers put the health care law into action. RWV believes that women are grassroots experts in what is wrong with the current health system and what it takes to fix it because of our roles as arrangers of health care for our families.

As a leading progressive research and advocacy organization, North Carolina Justice Center's mission is to eliminate poverty in North Carolina by ensuring that every household in the state has access to the resources, services and fair treatment it needs to achieve economic security. 

CDF-Ohio champions policies and programs that lift children out of poverty, protect them from abuse and neglect, and ensure their access to appropriate and targeted health care, quality education, and a moral and spiritual foundation. We pay particular attention to the needs of poor and minority children and those with disabilities. CDF-Ohio educates the state about the needs of children and encourages preventive investments before they get sick, drop out of school, get into trouble, or suffer family breakdown.

UHCAN Ohio's mission is to achieve high quality, accessible, affordable health care for all Ohioans.

Oregon Action’s mission is to involve people in our democracy who are traditionally on the downside of power—low income wage earners, women, people of color and immigrants– and to strengthen individual participation in decision-making processes that affect our lives. We are dedicated to advancing economic, political, social and racial justice.  Oregon Action believes power rests in the hands of the people.  Organizing people to work together, developing leaders in our communities, and exerting that power through direct action allow us to make our demands known and hold our public leaders accountable.

OSPIRG’s mission is to deliver persistent, result-oriented public interest activism that protects consumers, encourages a fair, sustainable economy, and fosters responsive, democratic government. OSPIRG uncovers threats to public health and wellbeing and fight to end them, using the time-tested tools of investigative research, media exposés, grassroots organizing, advocacy and litigation.

The Consumer Health Coalition believes that access to quality, affordable health care, and ultimately good health and wellness, are critical to a person’s ability to reach his or her potential. We also know that people experience disparate ’starting points’ or access to resources that are unfortunately correlated with socioeconomic status, racial or ethnic background, and disability status.

Pennsylvania Health Access Network (PHAN) is a statewide coalition of organizations working to protect high quality health insurance coverage for individuals and businesses and to expand coverage to the uninsured. PHAN works to promote change at the state and national level by mobilizing affected constituencies, including consumers, health care providers, business, labor, the faith community, and the general public to press for a more accessible and affordable health care system.

The Economic Progress Institute works to promote economic security for low- and modest-income Rhode Islanders and ensure tax policies are equitable and adequate to fund public services. We accomplish this through research, policy analysis, education and advocacy.

Rhode Island Parent Information Network's mission is to assist individuals, parents, families and children to achieve their goals for health, educational, and socio-economic well being by providing information, education, training, support and advocacy for person/family centered care and systems change.

Palmetto Project's mission is to identify innovative solutions to social and economic challenges facing our state, and put them into action. Palmetto Project looks at others states and communities that have been successful, and learn from them. Through special partnerships with governments, businesses, civic groups, schools, and religious organizations, they then go to work, applying the lessons they have learned and the strategies they’ve discovered to the ongoing work of community-building in our own state.

South Carolina Appleseed Legal Justice Center fights for low income South Carolinians to overcome social, economic and legal injustice.

Tennessee Healthcare Campaign is the state's premier nonprofit consumer health care advocacy group and a leader in the health care justice movement. Our mission for everyone to have guaranteed affordable choices in health care began in 1989.

Tennessee Justice Center (TJC) seeks justice for Tennessee’s vulnerable populations through the courts, in administrative proceedings and before legislative bodies. TJC addresses needs not met by any other agency and supports the work of other advocates for equal justice under law, both in Tennessee and beyond. We provide technical assistance to client groups, consumer advocacy coalitions and other social service agencies. The media and policymakers frequently rely upon TJC as a source of accurate and reliable information and analysis on legal matters and on public policies affecting the poor.

Center for Public Policy Priorities was born from faith and a vision of social justice in 1985 when a Congregation of Benedictine Sisters in Boerne, Texas, founded the center to improve health care access for the poor. 

Texas Impact is a statewide religious grassroots network whose members include individuals, congregations, and governing bodies of the Christian, Jewish and Muslim faiths. Texas Impact accomplishes its mission by developing grassroots networks in local communities and mobilizing them to advocate with their legislators on specific issues. 

UHPP is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization whose vision is for a health care system that provides medically necessary care to all Utah residents in a timely, efficient, and culturally effective manner with sustainable financing.

The common mission of VPIRG is to promote and protect the health of Vermont’s people, environment and locally-based economy by informing and mobilizing citizens statewide.

The Commonwealth Institute works to use policy research and analysis to advance the well-being of Virginia communities, and improve the economic security and social opportunities of all Virginians. 

Virginia Consumer Voices for Healthcare (VCV) is Virginia’s multi-constituency consumer coalition focused on the expansion and improvement of health care in the state. The goal of Virginia Consumer Voices is to build and sustain a broad-based consumer-focused coalition which includes patients, community and religious organizations, small businesses, organized labor, community health centers, and advocacy organizations to support the expansion and improvement of health care in Virginia.

Virginia Interfaith Center works to empower Virginians to create social justice for all by advocating for systemic change. 

Virginia Organizing, CASA, the Virginia Poverty Law Center (VPLC), and The Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis (TCI), will focus their efforts statewide, tackling the longstanding issue of access to quality, affordable health care for communities of color and immigrant residents, regardless of immigration status. The coalition will organize campaigns with strategic partners in an effort to build consensus and support for unified recommendations to policymakers. Through these efforts, the coalition will be able to build power with directly affected Virginians to influence changes that affect community members and their families.

The Virginia Poverty Law Center (VPLC) is a non-profit organization that serves Virginia's legal aid system by providing advocacy, training, and litigation support on civil justice issues that affect low-income Virginians.

Northwest Health Law Advocates (NoHLA) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to achieve a seamless health care system, in which all individuals receive affordable, quality care, and are assured of basic rights and protections. NoHLA's work focuses on issues of concern to low-income individuals and families, particularly in Washington State. Please see NoHLA Advocacy for information about NoHLA's recent work.

With over 40,000 members, Washington CAN! is the state’s largest grassroots community organization. Washington CAN! works to achieve racial, social, and economic justice in our state and nation. Their strength as an organization depends on our members’ involvement and they believe that they can only achieve their goals when people take action for justice.