Health: Take action and make the world a better place

Re: “Yes, the world is becoming a better place” (TNT, 12/27)

I agree with Andres Oppenheimer’s assessment that “the world is becoming a better place.” Mr. Oppenheimer serves up some statistics to highlight his opinion, but we should still all be outraged and angry.

Yes, child mortality has dropped significantly, but imagine a mother watching her baby die for lack of a vaccine, some of which cost pennies. Would you be able to look her in the eye and tell her the world is becoming a better place? More than 16,000 mothers watch their babies die every day before they reach their 5th birthday, and these are from totally preventable causes.

A few short years ago there were an estimated 27,000 children dying every day before their 5th birthday from preventable causes. The Global fund to fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria is one of the reasons for the drop in child mortality. Rep. Kilmer, along with every Washington state Republican and Democrat representative and senator, supported full funding for the Global Fund in the 2017 federal budget.

Channel your anger and outrage into hope. Contact your member of Congress and demand that the U.S. fully fund their commitment to the Global Fund during appropriations in 2017.

This story was originally published January 11, 2017 at 6:43 PM with the headline "Health: Take action and make the world a better place."