Emmet O'Sullivan, a 17-year-old high school student in New York City, has launched PolicyPlayground.org, a platform to make it easy for Americans to learn about bills that are before US Congress and to write to their senators to urge them to support the bills.
O’Sullivan presented the platform to a packed house at the Changemakers Conference by The Marketing Society at Advertising Week last week.
PolicyPlayground.org is a simple, non-partisan tool for US citizens to learn about bills before Congress and write letters to senators.
With Policy Playground, you can write and send a letter in less than one minute. You select a bill from the home page, hit “make a difference,” enter your state, and use the template to personalize and send your letter.
“Since I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, I've aimed to be an advocate for the T1D community and quality healthcare more broadly,” Emmet said.
Policy Playground 1.0 features six healthcare bills, including two diabetes-related bills, a bill to reduce out-of-pocket expenses for prescription medications, bills to enhance the quality of life for seniors and individuals with disabilities, and a bill on access to oral care.
“Our democracy is better when we engage with it as informed citizens," Emmet added. "I plan to expand Policy Playground to feature more healthcare bills and other policy realms."
At the age of 13, Emmet was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (T1D), a chronic disease for which there is no cure.
Since then, he has become a prolific advocate for the T1D community. In spring 2024, he authored and illustrated the children’s book Drew Discovers Diabetes, which became an Amazon international bestseller. While the book focuses on creating awareness of T1D to reduce patient complications from late diagnosis, PolicyPlayground is all about advocacy.
“We can all influence legislation by writing to our senators," Emmet said. "But we often miss out on this power because finding out about bills and contacting lawmakers is complicated. Policy Playground makes it easy."
About Policy Playground
Policy Playground believes in empowering individuals to take an active role in shaping the policies that impact their lives.
Its website hosts a selection of government bills related to healthcare, providing Americans with the tools and information needed to advocate for meaningful change.
Whether you're passionate about expanding healthcare access, improving patient rights, or advancing public health initiatives, Policy Playground makes it easy to stay informed and get involved.
With just a few clicks, users can read up on the latest bills, understand their implications, and send personalized emails to your senators, urging them to support or oppose specific legislation.
Policy Playground invites you to join them in making your voice heard and contributing to a healthier, more equitable society.
At Policy Playground, every click is a step toward positive change.
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