RESULTS
Austin 2018 Newsletter
RESULTS
Austin on the Hill in 2018
As a fairly recent addition to the RESULTS
community, Marian (on the right) felt very privileged to attend the 2018
International Conference (IC) last July. She was impressed by so many aspects
of the gathering, not least by the extensive preparations made in advance, not
only by those who made the journey to Washington, but those who were not
physically with us. Anne and Eloise gathered letters, made appointments, and
researched our representatives’ records on the issues we intended to address.
They sent the travelers off ready to make a difference.
Once at the IC, Marian was delighted to meet
the other members of the Texas delegation, including a group of brilliant young
people participating in RESULTS’ Real Change program, and a young man from
Dallas who wasn’t a Real Changer because he was too young -- but not too young
to make an eloquent case for increased spending against tuberculosis. The Austin-area delegation, led by RESULTS veterans
Mark (Global – on the left) and Sarah (Domestic – third from the left), joined
the rest of the Texans in attending Sen. Cruz’s weekly coffee and meeting with
Sen. Cornyn’s staffers. RESULTS Austin also met with attentive staffers for
Reps. O’Rourke, Hurd, Carter, Doggett, Flores, Castro, Smith, Williams, and
McCaul, and were surprised to be welcomed by Reps. Flores and Williams
themselves. They even had an impromptu elevator conversation with Rep. Scott
Peters of California. Austin Real Changers, sisters Avery and Addison (second
from right and left), made the meetings memorable, recounting their experiences
in Haiti, including delivering a baby and welcoming a Haitian little brother
who has survived both TB and HIV.
Though the visits to our Members of Congress
were the focus of the IC, Marian was also very impressed by the amount of
information provided by RESULTS staff and friends of the organization like
World Bank President Jim Yong Kim. In particular, she appreciated the focus on
tuberculosis, including an excellent session on efforts to create
cost-effective medications against multi-drug resistant and extensively drug
resistant forms of the disease. An unexpected session on possible changes to
federal policy on persons identified as “public charges” turned out to be
prescient.
Marian is grateful to have been able to attend
IC 2018 and looks forward to preparing our delegation for next year’s event.
Reach Every Mother &
Child Act
RESULTS global poverty
teams are working for a second Congressional session to pass the Reach Every
Mother and Child Act. RESULTS Austin was
able to secure two more cosponsor for HR 4022 this year bringing the Texas
total to 14 and 207 cosponsors from across the U.S.
 |
Mark,
Rep. Hurd’s staff - Anton, Marian
|
Congressman Will Hurd, as a former CIA officer
working abroad, he understands the relationship between development assistance
and our national security. Congressman Lloyd Doggett is a long-time supporter
of RESULTS initiatives. As a member of
the House Ways and Means committee, he is responsible to see that our taxes are
used effectively. The Reach Every Mother
and Child Act achieves both: putting our tax dollars to use with effective
maternal & child health programs and making sure we coordinate with other
governments & organizations for transparency and accountability.
Growing awareness for Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
is a deadly disease that spreads through the air and can impact any of us. Although the global infection rate is
declining, still every year, 10.5 million people get sick with TB, 1.5 million
die, and over 4 million (that’s 40%), are missed by health systems and never
treated.
A major
strength of RESULTS is that we dig into the nitty gritty details like
appropriations funding levels and we stick with issues for the long haul. In 1999 when RESULTS started working on TB,
the U.S invested only $1 million a year in global Tuberculosis programs. But with our urging, the House appropriations
bill currently includes $302 million for TB, the highest level ever, even
though early this year, the Administration suggested slashing foreign aid.
On
September 26, at the first ever UN High Level Meeting on TB, world leaders pledged
to reach 40 million people with TB treatment by 2022. RESULTS advocates are
going to continue to work with Congress to ensure that the U.S. keeps its
pledge, giving hope for reaching the missing untreated 40%, and ultimately, for
ending this killer disease.
2018 fundraising
In these polarizing political times, some may feel
hopeless. RESULTS advocates create hope
by being in action.
- We forge partnerships in the community to have a larger voice.
- We write multiple letters to the editor for every one that gets published
- We speak personally to members of Congress even though the conversation might sometimes be, at the very least, difficult.
Focusing on effective solutions and advocating
across party lines in concert with others across the country, new advocates
like Marian realize
the incredible power they possess to use their voices to change the world.
In supporting RESULTS advocacy,
visionary donors like you, not only create change, you create hope, and for
this we thank you.
If you wish to donate, please either send
your contribution in the enclosed envelope or contribute online at https://results.salsalabs.org/virtualthanksgivingfeast/t/resultsaustin. Thank you!
RESULTS / RESULTS Educational Fund
1101 15th St. NW, Suite 1200 - Washington, DC
20005
www.RESULTS.org
