As a member of the public health community, you have probably seen the troubling news of the House majority's FY25 bill that funds Health and Human Services agencies, including CDC. While this bill will not become law in its current form, it sends a disturbing signal about a lack of prioritization of public health by the House majority.
We are providing CSTE members with an opportunity to make your voice heard and make it clear these kinds of proposed cuts to public health and applied epidemiology are unacceptable.
Why this ask? Why now?
As summarized in today's CSTE blog, the numbers and implications for public health are concerning. Cuts to federal funding for public health have a direct impact on applied epidemiology funding in state, tribal, local and territorial (STLT) health departments. Almost 85% of funding for epidemiology personnel and activities in STLT health departments is directly from the CDC.
Right now, there is a small window to make our collective applied epidemiology voice heard before the House bill comes to the floor next week and the Senate finalizes its recommendations.
How do I make my voice heard?
It's easy and takes less than 5 minutes! CSTE has partnered with the American Public Health Association to make your outreach simple. Just click on the link below to send a message in your personal capacity to your Senators and Representative about the impact cuts to public health have on your jurisdiction. A sample message is provided for you (you don't need to modify), but feel free to personalize it with stories about why public health and applied epidemiology make a difference.
Be sure to complete the form by July 31:
https://www.votervoice.net/PublicHealth/Campaigns/102583/Respond
Your voice matters.
Even though this bill is not likely to be finalized, it is critical for members of Congress to hear that cuts to public health are NOT okay. Thank you for taking a few minutes to send these important emails.
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Kelsey Poole, MPH, CIC
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