Safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines brought a long-overdue end to a blanket federal ban on nursing home visitations this past March, but the surging delta variant has brought back the isolation and uncertainty of 2020 to nursing homes and other communal care facilities across the country.

This week, Susan Ryan and Alex Spanko sit down with a pair of grassroots leaders working to ensure that family members and other loved ones will never again be locked out during a public health emergency.

Mikko Cook and Carrie Leljedal share their deeply personal reasons for pursuing the Essential Caregivers Act (H.R. 3733), a piece of federal legislation that would provide a clear blueprint for loved ones to maintain uninterrupted access to their loved ones in nursing homes during this pandemic and future emergencies – while also ensuring everyone maintains proper safety protocols.

Cook and Leljedal are living proof that people can come together to bring a vital issue from their local communities all the way up to Congress, and we hope you walk away from today's episode inspired to join their growing movement.

Learn more about the Essential Caregivers Act: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/wp-content/uploads/Essential-Caregivers-Act-Fact-Sheet.pdf

Download a template to help guide your outreach to federal lawmakers: https://thegreenhouseproject.org/wp-content/uploads/Essential-Caregivers-Act-Advocacy-Template.pdf

Get involved with the groups working to protect the rights of essential caregivers:

https://essentialcaregivermovement.org/

https://www.essentialcaregiverscoalition.org/

Learn more about The Green House Project: www.thegreenhouseproject.org