Write a Letter to the Editor

Want to make a difference with just a few words? Writing a Letter to the Editor is a simple yet powerful way to raise awareness, influence public opinion, and get the attention of your Member of Congress. Whether you’re sharing your personal story, highlighting an important issue, or supporting a cause you believe in, your voice matters. Use this opportunity to help shape the conversation—and don’t worry, we’ve got tips and tools to make it easy.

This short guide has information about why Letters to the Editor (LTEs) are important, some tips for drafting your letter, key facts you might include, and templates you can use. Remember, you can use your Hook, Line, and Sinker training to make an effective ask.

Letters to the Editor are Important!

Your Members of Congress and their staff read the newspapers from their state or district. Writing a letter to the editor – and mentioning your Member of Congress in it – helps bring attention to issues they need to know about. Your voice is a powerful tool, and we’re here to help you use it. We’ll use the “So Every BODY Can Move” Campaign as an example of how to craft an effective Letter to the Editor, which you can use as a template to write about any advocacy issue.

Note: Insurance companies often deny coverage of prosthetic and orthotic devices designed for specific activities, deeming them “not medically necessary.” The So Every BODY Can Move campaign is a state-by-state legislative campaign to increase access to prosthetic and orthotic devices by changing the definition of medical necessity in state laws.

Using the guidelines and suggestions below, please write your Letter to the Editor about why the So Every BODY Can Move Campaign is so important to the limb loss and limb difference community. Before submitting your letter to the editor to your local paper, please share it with us at (Communications@Amputee- Coalition.org), so we can help you make sure

it is as effective as possible and most likely to get published. If you’re having trouble finding the right email address, contact information, or online submission form for your local paper, please let us know and we can help you.

Also, please remember to share the good news with us when your letter is published! We love to see your work in print, and we’ll want to celebrate it and share it on our social media channels and in our newsletter.

Keep it short: Newspapers typically require letters to the editor to be no more than 200 words long, so be sure to check with your newspaper about their limit. You can find that information on the opinion page both in print and on their website, or by calling the newspaper’s main telephone number.

Be you: You bring to the discussion what no one else can: your personal story. Through your personal story, you can explain how this legislation helps people like you and why it is so important for your lawmaker to support it.

Get local: Remember to localize your letter as best you can. Editors are looking to show how bigger issues affect your local area. Consider sharing the number of people in your state affected by limb loss or limb difference each year, or other local statistics.

Keep it simple: The person reading your letter may have never heard of this issue before, so write your letter as if you’re explaining it to your neighbor for the first time. Avoid acronyms or jargon that readers won’t understand. For example, you don’t need to use bill numbers in your letter. Bill numbers are important for lawmakers, but not to the average newspaper reader.

Pick one or two key facts: Please stick to one or two key facts. Because we’re so passionate about these issues, we have a lot of information to share. But, if you give too many statistics or facts, they won’t stick with your reader. Pick one or two you think are the most powerful to make your case.

Ask for what you want: Remember to let readers know what you’re asking your lawmaker to support and why. And encourage them to reach out, too!

Submit once: Don’t submit the same letter to multiple newspapers in the same city or town. Editors don’t like to see something from their paper printed in a competing paper, and it may hurt your chances of getting published now and in the future.

• Because prosthetic and orthotic devices designed for specific activities are not considered medically necessary, people who have limb loss and limb difference are forced to be less physically active.
• In 2024, So Every BODY Can Move Legislation has been passed in eight states: Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, New Hampshire and New Mexico.
• So Every BODY Can Move Legislation is non-partisan. Its legislative sponsors have ranged from conservative Republicans to liberal Democrats. [Look up the legislative sponsors in your state to be more specific.]
• So Every BODY Can Move changes the law so that activity specific prosthetic and orthotic devices designed for physical activity are considered medically necessary.
• Without So Every BODY Can Move legislation, many people with limb loss or limb difference are forced to make a choice between engaging in physical activity with a device that was not designed for physical activity, or a much more sedentary lifestyle.
• So Every BODY Can Move Legislation has minimal impact on insurance premiums in the short term and can reduce costs in the long term by enabling healthier lifestyles.
• Children with disabilities are 4.5 times less likely to engage in physical activity compared to their peers.5 Ensuring that kids have access to the right devices can minimize this gap for kids
• It is important to pass this bill before the end of the year so our country can begin to provide the best care for people living with limb loss and limb difference.

REFERENCE

5. Johnson, M., Nocera, V., Kaushal, N., Simon, L., & Hasson, R. (2021, March 22). Providing children with disabilities equal access to quality education1. American College of Sports Medicine. https://www.acsm.org/blog-detail/ acsm-blog/2021/03/22/prioritize- equitable-access-to-physical-activity- for-children-with-disabilities

TEMPLATE: Ask Your Senators and Representative to Co-Sponsor the Bill

Physical Activity is a Right

Over 5.6 million Americans live with limb loss or limb difference, but in almost every state, people with limb loss and limb difference don’t have access to the prosthetic and orthotic devices that enable them to live physically active and healthy lifestyles. That’s why I’m urging [Sen/Rep Name] to cosponsor the So Every BODY Can Move Act [Your State].

Insurance companies often deny access to activity specific prostheses and orthoses, calling them “not medically necessary.” The objective of the So Every BODY Can Move Campaign is to increase access to prosthetic and orthotic devices by changing the definition of medical necessity.

Without this legislation, many people with limb loss and limb difference are forced to make a choice between engaging in physical activity with a device that was not designed for physical activity, or living a much more sedentary lifestyle, which is extremely detrimental to physical and mental health.

As a member of the limb loss and limb difference community, I know that access to physical activity and recreation isn’t a luxury, it’s imperative for health and wellbeing.

[Here’s where you can include your personal story and explain why this legislation is important to you and others in the limb loss and limb difference community]

The So Every BODY Can Move [Your State] Act will improve the lives of every person living with limb loss and limb difference in this state.

[NAME]

Volunteer, Amputee Coalition

[HOMETOWN, STATE]

TEMPLATE: Thank Your Representative or Senators for Co-sponsoring the Bill

Thank You, [Sen/Rep NAME], for being a true champion for our community!

Over 5.6 million Americans live with limb loss or limb difference, but in almost every state, people with limb loss and limb difference don’t have access to the prosthetic and orthotic devices that enable them to live physically active and healthy lifestyles. That’s why I am very grateful [Sen/Rep Name] [cosponsored/introduced] the So Every BODY Can Move [your state] Act.

As a member of the limb loss and limb difference community, I know that access to physical activity and recreation isn’t a luxury, it’s imperative for health and wellbeing.

[Here’s where you can include your personal story and explain why this legislation is important to you and others in the limb loss and limb difference community]

The So [Your State] Can Move Act will improve the lives of every person living with limb loss and limb difference in this state.

[NAME]

Volunteer, Amputee Coalition

[HOMETOWN, STATE]

As we celebrate 40 years of progress, your story can shape the next 40. Take a few minutes to write a letter to the editor and help spotlight the issues that matter to our community. Whether you’re advocating for improved access, sharing your lived experience, or supporting the So Every BODY Can Move movement, your words can spark awareness, drive policy, and inspire action.

Make your voice heard. Write your letter today and be part of the movement for change.