Learn more about the SIR Advocacy Fund.


However, SIRPAC is reasonably small, especially in comparison to other medical political action committees. While it regularly joins forces with other PACS, it doesn’t have the stand-alone power of an organization like RADPAC, the American College of Radiology PAC. According to Dr. Shah, larger organizations like RADPAC regularly fundraise almost 10–20 times more than SIRPAC— and while RADPAC is a key ally that advocates for all of radiology, its interest is not focused on interventional radiology.


Dr. Shah says his dream is to make SIRPAC donations part of the cultural fabric of IR, much like other specialties have.


“Orthopedics raise almost seven figures a year for their PAC, because it’s part of their culture,” Dr. Shah said. “Residents begin donating because they see the benefit when their attendings do it and they encourage the practice.”


Learn how to donate to SIRPAC.


Dr. Shah wants that for IR, suggesting that framing the support as a reasonable recurring payment each month may make it more accessible for members. For example, residents dedicated to IR could donate the value of a cup of coffee a month. Junior attendings could donate the value of one meal. And as IRs progress in their career and become senior attendings, they can donate more as their salaries increase.


“SIRPAC is more than just a political action committee—it is a vital tool for safeguarding the future of our specialty,” said Dr. Tomihama. “SIRPAC’s work directly impacts the legislative and regulatory environment in which we practice, and by contributing to SIRPAC, members are investing in the long-term viability of interventional radiology.”


Member donation—of time or money—is crucial for ensuring that the IR voice remains strong and influential.


“SIRPAC’s success depends on broad participation from across our specialty; the more unified and engaged we are, the more effective we can be in advocating for our collective interests,” said Dr. Tomihama.


The SIR Advocacy Fund For those who have reached their maximum SIRPAC donation limits or are looking for additional ways to support IR advocacy, SIR has launched an all-new opportunity: The SIR Advocacy Fund.


30 IRQ | FALL 2024


“SIRPAC’s success depends on broad participation from across our specialty; the more unified and engaged we are, the more effective we can be in advocating for our collective interests.” —ROGER T. TOMIHAMA, MD


The SIR Advocacy Fund is a vital funding resource in support of SIR’s advocacy work that, unlike SIRPAC, can accept support from OBLs and corporate partners. The fund is designed to support and expand critical advocacy initiatives that shape the future of IR at both the state and federal levels.


“The SIR Advocacy Fund can collect soft dollar contributions of any amount from any individual, corporation or other PAC, regardless of whether they are an SIR member,” Dr. Tomihama said. “Alternatively, SIRPAC contributions are considered hard dollar, and can only be used to make contributions to support state and federal campaigns.”


There are also limits on how much an individual or organization can donate to SIRPAC per election cycle ($5,000), whereas there is no level for SIR Advocacy Fund donations.


Donations given to the SIR Advocacy Fund cannot be used to support political campaigns. Instead, the funds will be used to support SIR Advocacy activities.


“That might mean increasing the SIRPAC presence at meetings, hosting more frequent Washington Fly-In events or improving our volunteer training materials for the Voices for IR program,” said Dr. Tomihama. In addition, the SIR advocacy team hopes that the SIR Advocacy Fund can support the creation of state-level advocacy programs to do more direct work on a state and local level.


“This is a great way for businesses and IR allies to showcase their support for IR therapies and patient access,” said Dr. Shah.


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