Deputy Policy Director, UW Medicine

University of Washington•Seattle, WA

4d•Hybrid

About The Position

UW Medicine has an outstanding opportunity for a Deputy Policy Director to join their team. Reporting to the Public Policy Director, the Deputy Policy Director is responsible for advancing UW Medicine’s public policy agenda through sophisticated state and federal policy analysis, legislative and regulatory tracking, fiscal coordination, strategic communications, and stakeholder engagement. This position helps ensure UW Medicine leaders have timely, accurate, and actionable insight on legislative, regulatory, and budget matters that affect the health system, academic medicine, biomedical research, and the communities UW Medicine serves. This role is a high-impact opportunity for a policy professional who thrives at the intersection of health care, higher education, research, public service, and government. The Deputy Policy Director will partner closely with UW Medicine executive leaders, faculty, administrative teams, University colleagues, state, federal, and local legislative staff, state agencies, and external associations to shape thoughtful, mission-aligned public policy strategies while maintaining compliance, credibility, and reputational integrity.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in political science, public policy, economics, public administration, or a related field.
Five years of experience in public policy, legislative analysis, government relations, or budget/policy research.
Strong analytical, written, and oral communication skills.
Ability to work effectively under pressure and meet deadlines.
Demonstrated experience working with legislative or regulatory processes.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in public policy, public administration, or related field.
Experience in higher education, healthcare, or biomedical policy.
Knowledge of state and federal budget processes; experience preparing fiscal notes or cost analyses.

Responsibilities

Partner with UW Medicine leadership to develop UW Medicine’s institutional positions on legislative and regulatory issues, including legislative agenda items, rulemaking priorities, and state budget priorities.
Track, research, and analyze federal, state, and local legislative and regulatory proposals affecting UW Medicine, with attention to academic medicine, health care delivery, biomedical research, and operational impact.
Draft high-quality policy memos, briefing materials, comments, testimony, talking points, summaries, and leadership reports that translate complex issues into clear, actionable recommendations.
Support implementation planning for new laws, rules, and policy requirements across UW Medicine departments by identifying risks, impacts, dependencies, and opportunities for alignment.
Maintain tracking systems and policy monitoring tools to ensure leadership and partners have accurate, current information on emerging policy issues and advocacy opportunities.
Serve as a key UW Medicine point of contact for fiscal analyses related to legislative and regulatory proposals, coordinating with University budget and finance offices and internal subject matter experts.
Develop or coordinate fiscal notes, cost estimates, and impact analyses that help UW Medicine assess financial, operational, compliance, and strategic implications of proposed policy changes.
Prepare budget and fiscal policy briefings for UW Medicine leaders, highlighting decision points, risks, opportunities, and recommended next steps.
Coordinate with University partners in state, federal, and community relations to align policy positions, messaging, and strategies across levels of government.
Provide responsive legislative session support, including bill tracking, rapid policy research, fiscal analysis, communication drafting, and issue escalation during peak workload periods.
Prepare briefing materials and talking points for UW Medicine leaders participating in legislative, agency, association, and external stakeholder meetings.
Support ad hoc projects and initiatives as assigned by the Senior Director of Public Policy or Chief External Affairs Officer. These projects will include strategic planning sessions and research for government officials, community organizations, and UW Medicine leaders.