ACT NOW: Tell your Representatives to stand up for prevention funding

Budget negotiations continue this week on Capitol Hill. As proposals go back and forth, it's critical to take action on behalf of the Prevention and Public Health Fund. Contact your representatives today and urge them to defend prevention funding. Every dollar invested in prevention has the proven potential to save $5 or more. It would be the height of folly to cut prevention dollars when this small investment would save so much more.

The Prevention and Public Health Fund supports community efforts to keep people healthy in the first place by helping communities across the country reduce public smoking, promote bicycle riding and bring healthy food to neighborhoods and schools that have little access to it. For the Affordable Care Act to truly succeed in improving health and reducing costs, we must shift our health system toward prevention.

Despite prevention’s promise to save lives and money, the Prevention and Public Health Fund is a favorite target for cuts during the “fiscal cliff” negotiations. We need to let our representatives and the House and Senate leadership, as well as the Obama administration, know how important it is to protect the Fund from short-sighted cuts.

Every representative and senator needs to hear that their constituents value investments in prevention investments and oppose cuts to the Fund. Tell Congress now: Don’t cut our ounce of prevention.

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We also want to express our thanks to those of you who have already sent letters to your representatives, urging them to stand up for the Prevention and Public Health Fund. Please take extra steps to defend the Fund:

• Share the action on your Facebook wall
• Tweet the action to your followers
• Forward this email to your colleagues, family and friends and ask them to join you in taking action to defend public health and prevention.
• If you live outside California:
  
  • Call the House and Senate leadership and tell them not to cut the Prevention and Public Health Fund during budget negotiations.
    
    • House Speaker John Boehner: 202-225-6205
    • House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi: 202-225-4965
    • Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid: 202-224-3542
    • Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell: 202-224-2541
• Californians: Seven members of the California Congressional delegation have signed a letter to President Obama urging him to defend the Prevention and Public Health Fund. Encourage your representative to join them.