Alison is a Mexican-American, PhD-prepared nurse turned health policy staffer with the U.S. Congress in Washington, D.C. Her journey to health policy started with her interest in helping older adults achieve their highest quality of life. During her Ph.D. studies, Alison focused her research on promoting physical activity for older adults with chronic health conditions. Her interests in older adult health and well-being brought her to Washington, DC, as a Health & Aging Policy Fellow (2019-2020), a program sponsored by Northwestern University and Columbia University. As a Health & Aging Policy Fellow, she worked in the U.S. House of Representatives with Congresswoman Donna E. Shalala (former Secretary of Health and Human Services under President Clinton). Alison’s work as a Fellow on Capitol Hill motivated her to apply her nursing and research expertise to public service. Alison worked as HEalth Legislative Assistant for Congressman Steven Horsford (NV-04), covering his Ways and Means work on the health subcommittee. She is currently a Policy Advisor for the Senate Special Committee on Aging, focusing on disability policy development. Alison is committed to creating policies that support healthy life spans for all.