Meet the NOSSCR Staff: Betsy Osborn

Do you remember that scene in the movie Top Gun when the fighter jet just barely sticks the landing on the aircraft carrier – a tiny strip of concrete in a vast, blue ocean?

If your immediate reaction was, “That’s something I’d love to try,” you might want to first check with NOSSCR’s new government relations manager, Betsy Osborn. She got to experience that tailhook landing as well as a catapult take-off when working as a legislative aide to the chairman of the U.S. House Armed Services Committee.

“It was both thrilling and terrifying,” Betsy says of the experience. “At one point, I was certain the G- force was going to make my eyes pop out of my head. The entire experience left me with profound respect for the men and women who serve in the U.S. Navy. Their professionalism and expertise are unmatched.”

While perhaps not as exhilarating as landing on an aircraft carrier, Betsy is very excited to be at NOSSCR. As a veteran of Capitol Hill, she’s had the opportunity to work on dozens of policy issues, but always found herself drawn to social security.

“Previous roles have given me a first-hand view of the impact the social security disability program can have in helping people. It’s a monumental safety net for people with disabilities,” she says.

Her interest in social security issues has even influenced her view of history. She notes that Franklin Delano Roosevelt is her favorite president and it’s partly because of the role he played in creating the social security program.

Betsy sees her NOSSCR role as having two major responsibilities. Most prominently, she’ll be responsible for building relationships with key members of Congress and their staff to educate them about NOSSCR’s legislative priorities and gain their support.

Her second role is no less important though – engaging NOSSCR members to get involved in advocacy. “We need our members to speak out and share stories about the challenges they and their clients face. In the end, their activism will benefit themselves and the entire profession.”