Contacts with friends in countries where I have been involved tell me about the impact of COVID-19 in their countries at the same time they are raising concerns for me. The COVID global pandemic requires an urgent global response. The White House and Congress don't seem to get that; they left DC for a long recess, telling millions of suffering people to wait.
In most low-income countries the pandemic is undermining decades of progress in fighting disease. Millions of children are missing out on life-saving vaccines and food insecurity and starvation are rising fast.
It is in U.S. interest to help low-income countries deal with the immediate crisis and strengthen healthcare systems in the long run. That's how we prevent future disease outbreaks from becoming deadly global pandemics.
I call on Representative Walker and Senators Burr and Tillis to break the stalemate in DC and pass an emergency response package that addresses the urgent needs of Americans and includes no less than $20 billion for international development. Frontline organizations like the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria; and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance are out of emergency funds and the stakes are great. Will they act?
Barbara Clawson, Burlington
