ASRM Office of Public Affairs

J. Benjamin Younger Office of Public Affairs

Who and What We Are

In 1989, the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) opened a Public Affairs Office in Washington, DC, in response to growing government involvement in health care. 

Since then, the Washington Office has grown to include both government relations and public relations functions. As a result, the Washington Office was renamed the Office of Public Affairs in 1995, and then in 2003, named the J. Benjamin Younger Office of Public Affairs in honor of the late ASRM Executive Director, J. Benjamin Younger, M.D., who was instrumental in launching the office in 1989 during his term as ASRM President. 

The Society established the Washington Office so that the collective voice of our members resonates on Capitol Hill, at state government levels, and in the media.

The J. Benjamin Younger Office of Public Affairs conducts the following activities on behalf of ASRM members:

Government Relations

As one of the leading reproductive medicine organizations, the ASRM represents members on key issues before the federal and state legislatures. We communicate membership concerns with regard to federal and state legislation through a variety of forums. Legislators are currently examining the legal and ethical issues in reproductive health and, as a result, they are becoming more dependent on experts in reproductive medicine for guidance in constructing responsible legislation. To this end, the J. Benjamin Younger Office of Public Affairs:

• Testifies before Congress and federal agencies.
• Communicates with members of Congress, their staffs and agency personnel.
• Participates in coalitions with other medical societies and associations to strengthen our position.
• Serves as an educational resource to legislators and the public.
• Monitors and recruits ASRM members to monitor legislation in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
• Represents the ASRM at the American Medical Association.
• Coordinates the ASRM "Net" -- a program in which ASRM members interested in reproductive health care policy help conduct government and public relations activities on behalf of the ASRM. Net participants may be called upon to testify before state legislatures, correspond with elected officials, and comment in the media on regulatory activities of interest to the Society.
• Coordinates the annual Public Affairs Workshop.

Public Relations

The Society has developed a proactive media and public relations campaign to broaden the general knowledge of infertility and ART procedures. These public relations programs have been developed to promote awareness of the social, moral and medical relevance of reproductive disorders and the important role that reproductive medicine plays in addressing these problems. The J. Benjamin Younger Office of Public Affairs:

• Conducts ongoing media relations activities with the national print and broadcast media.
• Fulfills ongoing media requests.
• Drafts news releases and statements on the Society's position.
• Organizes and coordinates press conferences, briefings, special interviews, and a writer's conference.
• Conducts a media relations program at the ASRM Annual Meeting.
• Serves as the liaison to public information counterparts in the major health care organizations.
• Provides public relations training and materials to members of "The Net".

Public Affairs Staff

J. Benjamin Younger Office of Public Affairs
726 7th St. SE
Washington, DC 20003
Tel: 202-863-2494