Leadership Day
May 12-13, 2026
Overview of Leadership Day
Welcome to Leadership Day 2026, the American College of Physicians’ (ACP) annual two-day advocacy event held in Washington, D.C. Leadership Day enables ACP to increase its presence on Capitol Hill and strengthen the voice of the internal medicine community in discussing issues of interest and concern with U.S. lawmakers. We have an exciting program and experience in store for you including educational briefings from ACP staff on the key policies you will be discussing with lawmakers as well as advocacy tips on how to present ACP’s Leadership Day issues to your members of Congress, an awards program, and briefings from lawmakers. The second day of the event is dedicated to meetings with your members of Congress. See agenda details here and some FAQs regarding event logistics. The event will be held at the Westin Washington, DC Downtown Hotel which is a short metro or taxi ride to Congressional offices.
ACP National will schedule ALL congressional meetings for attendees and chapters. Our scheduler, Soapbox Consulting, will make every effort to choregraph meeting schedules so attendees will have enough time to get from one meeting to the next without feeling rushed.
ACP's Advocacy Agenda/Expectations
There is so much happening this year and the November elections right around the corner it is crucial that Congress hear from ACP members on issues of importance to internal medicine. Therefore, we are counting on the participation of all ACP chapters to help with our advocacy efforts at this year’s Leadership Day.
Key Priority Issues for Leadership Day
Potential Leadership Day priority issues include advocating for legislation that protect patients’ access to immunizations, reduce administrative burden on physicians, improve physician payment, ensure patient affordability and access to care, and strengthen the physician workforce and reduce the burden of student debt.
The Role of Chapters and ACP Members
The involvement of our chapters and our ACP advocates is vital to the effectiveness of our advocacy efforts, and that includes your participation in Leadership Day. This event is our most critical advocacy event of the year, providing you the opportunity to learn about and advocate for legislation that directly impacts internal medicine physicians and their patients, meet with lawmakers, and most importantly provide your real-world perspective as a physician on how policies being contemplated by Congress impact your patients. As constituents, your involvement in the legislative process can make all the difference in your lawmakers’ decision whether to support or oppose a given policy proposal. As always, we appreciate the time that you take away from your practice, your patients, and your family to be here in Washington advocating with us for the greater good.
For other information or questions about Leadership Day, please contact Shuan Tomlinson, Associate, State Health Policy & Grassroots at 1-800-338-2746, Ext. 4547 or by email at stomlinson@acponline.org. Chapter participation in Leadership Day and the Advocates for Internal Medicine Network (AIMn) program are the bedrocks of ACP’s advocacy program. Thank you for your chapter's support and we look forward to seeing you at Leadership Day!
Draft Agenda
NOTE: All times below EDT
Tuesday, May 12
| TIME | EVENT |
| 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. | Registration |
| 10:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. | Opening Remarks Darilyn Moyer, MD, MACP, FRCP, FIDSA, FAMWA, FEFIM Jan Carney, FACP Noel Deep, MD, FACP Colleen Christmas, MD FACP |
| 10:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. | General Session TBA |
| 11:00 a.m. – 11:55 a.m. | Going Beyond Leadership Day: Leveraging Advocacy to Strengthen Member Engagement
|
| 12:00 p.m. – 12:45 p.m. | Lunch |
| 12:45 p.m. – 1:15 p.m. | Awards Ceremony Colleen Christmas, MD FACP Chair, Board of Governors Raminder Gill, MD, FACP Chair, ACP Services PAC |
| 1:15 p.m. – 1:45 p.m. | A Deep Dive on Leadership Day Issues Shari Erickson, ACP Senior Vice President and Chief Advocacy Officer, Governmental Affairs and Public Policy |
| 1:45 p.m. – 2:45 p.m. | Advocacy Workshop: Making the Most of Your Hill Meetings David Pugach, Vice President, Governmental Affairs and Public Policy |
| 2:45 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. | Break |
| 3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. | Congressional Staff Panel: Understanding the Current Landscape Moderator: George Lyons, JD, MBA, Director, Legislative Affairs, ACP |
| 4:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. | Congressional Meeting Preparation Shuan Tomlinson Associate, State Health Policy and Grassroots Advocacy Christopher Kush, MPP CEO, Soapbox Consulting |
| 4:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. | Chapter Prep Time |
| 6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. | Welcome to Washington Reception hosted by ACP Services, Inc. Political Action Committee (PAC); Open to 2026 ACP Services PAC members only |
Wednesday, May 13
| TIME | EVENT |
| 7:30 a.m. – 9:15 a.m. | Breakfast Opening Remarks Briefing by Members of Congress
|
| 9:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. | Congressional Meetings |
CME
The American College of Physicians is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
More Information to Come.
Issue Briefs/Materials
These materials consist of short issue briefs on each of the College's policy priorities for Leadership Day. The briefs contain specific "asks" of Congress and are intended to be provided to congressional offices following each meeting. Although we will review the content during Leadership Day, please take the time to thoroughly read the issue briefs in advance of the event to prepare.
Issue Briefs
- Coming soon.
Issue Training
- Coming soon.
ACP Vaccination and Masking Policy
Masking
Currently, the District of Columbia community level of COVID-19 is rated “Low” by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention. Under these community conditions, masking is not required, but ACP encourages masking as a caring precaution to protect each other. If you choose not to mask, please be respectful of others and their level of comfort and be mindful of proximity to those who may not be comfortable without masking due to their personal risk assessment. Every precaution allowable will be taken during meals at the event to help ensure the health and safety of attendees. Dining with the group is a choice based on each individual’s comfort level.
Vaccination
ACP expects everyone who participates in-person at Leadership Day to be up to date with their COVID-19 vaccines per the CDC’s recommendations. Up-to-date means having received all doses in the primary series and one booster when eligible, which will be different depending on age, health status, what vaccine was received first and when. A second booster is not necessary to be considered up to date. Anyone who will not be up to date at the time of the event should contact ACP beforehand to discuss their situation and ACP will determine whether or not they may attend.