Action Alert: Urge Congress to End Fistula

Today, EngenderHealth joined a broad coalition of organizations in applauding Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Rep. Michael Castle (R-DE) for introducing important legislation that will help transform the lives of millions of women worldwide. The Obstetric Fistula Prevention, Treatment, Hope and Dignity Restoration Act of 2010, H.R. 5441, would authorize funding to prevent obstetric fistula and treat women suffering from this debilitating condition. Read the joint press release here.

“We are thrilled to see that the bill recognizes the importance of partnering with national governments and institutions and strengthening local capacity as the way forward,” said Ana Langer, M.D., President of EngenderHealth. “We know this is the most sustainable approach to preventing and treating obstetric fistula. This captures the spirit and intent of the Obama Administration’s Global Health Initiative.”

H.R. 5441 was introduced just days before the start of Women Deliver, the largest-ever conference on maternal and reproductive health, convened in Washington, DC, from June 7–9, 2010. Download the full legislation here (PDF, 41KB).

Take a moment now to write to your representatives today and ask them to co-sponsor the bill.

Learn more about Fistula Care, which is bringing vital fistula prevention and treatment services to women in 11 countries, with support from the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Spotlight on Ghana: President Obama Visits EngenderHealth Training Site

Richard Killian, Chief of Party for Quality Health Partners (managed by EngenderHealth) sits with colleagues at an information booth during President and Mrs. Obama’s visit to La General Hospital.

President Obama greets Richard Killian and other EngenderHealth staff at the information booth.

During his visit to Ghana, President Obama traveled to La General Hospital in Accra, where EngenderHealth trains health providers from across the country to provide high-quality family planning services. While at the hospital, the President and the First Lady stopped by an information booth, met a few of our staff who spoke about the importance of family planning, and learned more about our programs across the country.

EngenderHealth has worked in Ghana for more than 20 years to expand contraceptive use, improve health outcomes, and make lasting positive changes in the Ghanaian public health system. Currently, EngenderHealth collaborates with the local government to reduce maternal deaths, by ensuring that clients can prevent unwanted pregnancies and can choose from a wide range of family planning services, including long-acting and permanent methods. Other initiatives include expanding prevention and treatment services for HIV and reducing related stigma. Indeed, we work with all levels of the health system—from doctors to midwives to policymakers—to improve the quality of health care.

During his visit, President Obama spoke passionately about the need to address poor maternal health. “Part of the reason this is so important is throughout Africa the rates of both infant mortality, but also maternal mortality, [are] still far too high—I mean by a factor of a multiple of 10s compared to many other parts of the world,” the President said. The kinds of programs that provide strong prenatal and maternal care, he said, “are very important.” President Obama’s comments, along with proposed funding increases in next year’s budget, signal his commitment to global maternal and child health, as well as to reproductive health and family planning.

Meeting several mothers and their babies at the clinic, President Obama noted, “This is the highlight of the trip.”

Read more information about EngenderHealth’s activities in Ghana.

The Kerry-Lugar amendment passed by unanimous consent!

The Kerry-Lugar amendment just passed in the Senate by unanimous consent! Thank you to everyone who sent your Senators a letter supporting the Kerry-Lugar Amendment. Our collective efforts paid off.

With your help, we can continue to make sure our leaders stay committed to global health. If you have not already done so, please join our 3FOR1 campaign at http://www.3FOR1.org in support of international family planning—watch the video, send the letter to President Obama, and spread the word. Thank you!

Global Health Funding At Risk: Take Action Now!

Click here NOW to contact your senators.

As you know, we have been urging President Obama and the U.S. Congress to commit $1 billion to international family planning programs in 2010--which would be part of the Federal International Affairs Budget. The House and Senate budget committees have now approved a 2010 budget with significantly less funding for international affairs than in President Obama's original budget proposal, which called for $53.8 billion. The House committee proposes spending 10% less on international affairs than President Obama's budget, and the Senate committee calls for a 7.4% reduction.

The International Affairs Budget supports critical global development and health initiatives that save children's lives, prevent the spread of HIV and malaria, and provide women and couples with lifesaving family planning that lets them plan their futures and offers opportunities to escape the cycle of poverty. We need to ensure Congress fully funds these vital international programs. The global financial crisis has only worsened conditions for the world's most vulnerable people, and our support now can significantly impact their lives.

Senators John Kerry (D-MA) and Richard Lugar (R-IN) have introduced an amendment in the Senate to restore President Obama's original request level for the International Affairs Budget. It is very important that you e-mail a letter to your Senators and urge them to co-sponsor and vote for the Kerry-Lugar Amendment and oppose any other reductions in funding. You can also call the Senate switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask to speak your Senator's office.

The time to act is now. Make sure your voice is heard! Go to www.engenderhealth.org/s2010 and send the message to your senators.

What is 3FOR1? Watch our new video, and join us.

Today, EngenderHealth is launching the 3FOR1 campaign urging President Obama and
Congress to commit $1 billion to international family planning programs
in 2010. We're asking you to join us.

Family planning is a basic right. Yet, there are an estimated 201
million women worldwide who want to use it, but can't--they do not have
access. Changing this reality through increased U.S. investment can
bring significant short- and long-term returns: When women and couples
are able to plan their families, they have the chance to have healthier
and better-educated children and more productive lives, which can lead
to more stable and economically strong communities and countries.

President Obama has stated that he wants to change the way the United
States is viewed around the world. One way to demonstrate this is to
commit to improving women's health and welfare through a stepped-up
investment in family planning.

Right now, the U.S. budget for international family planning is not much
higher than it was in 1974, when adjusted for inflation. To keep up with
the large and growing need for family planning, we call on the
President to increase the U.S. contribution to this global effort to
$1 billion. This represents less than one twentieth of 1% of the
proposed 2010 federal budget--less than a penny per day for every American.

Help us ensure international family planning and reproductive health are
top priorities for the U.S. government. Watch EngenderHealth's new video
and write a letter to President Obama calling for $1 billion to be
dedicated to international family planning.

President Obama Lifts the Global Gag!

EngenderHealth is thrilled to announce that President Barack Obama has rescinded the Global Gag Rule!

Thanks to all of you who signed our petition and made your voices heard. Your involvement and commitment paid off.

This is only the first of many positive changes to come, and there is still much work to be done to advance sexual and reproductive health. EngenderHealth has identified the top 5 actions for the Obama Administration, including investing more in international family planning programs, which remain severely underfunded. We will be mobilizing around this and other reproductive health priorities in the coming months. Stay tuned!

The Time to Lift the Global Gag Rule Is Now

By Isaiah Ndong, Vice President for Programs at EngenderHealth

Over the last eight years, the impact of the Global Gag Rule has been harshest in parts of the world most in need of better health services. The policy forbids any foreign organization receiving U.S. family planning aid from providing, referring to, or advocating for abortion services in their country—even with their own funds, and even if abortion is legal. Organizations that do not comply lose all U.S. support, including essential supplies of contraceptives.

I am a physician and was working with EngenderHealth in Ghana at the time that President Bush reinstated the policy during his first days in office. We felt the effects almost immediately, as the Global Gag Rule began to limit our reach as an organization. We could no longer work with local partners who put women’s health and the integrity of their medical staff above U.S. policy, even though they counted on us for support that made it possible for them to offer care in rural communities where no other health services were available.

In Ghana, not only were supplies of contraceptives cut in half, but clinics were forced to shut down or drastically reduce their family planning, maternal and child health, and HIV services. And there is no evidence that that this policy has reduced abortion. Indeed, unsafe abortion remains among the leading causes of maternal deaths.

So, while the Global Gag Rule was designed to reduce abortion, the policy’s domino effect has had negative effects on people’s lives in ways that have nothing to do with abortion. Because health clinics often offered integrated care, the loss in funding due to the Global Gag Rule has had dramatic consequences for services like immunizations for children, voluntary counseling and testing for HIV, and treatment for malaria. Throughout Africa, and in parts of Asia and Latin America, entire communities have seen their health care compromised by this policy.

But we are at a turning point. President-elect Obama has the opportunity to repeal the Global Gag Rule, and we must put pressure on him to do so. No doubt there are a number of priorities that he must address immediately (the economy, two ongoing wars), but getting rid of the gag will cost nothing. Rather, it will be a symbolic move saying that the United States cares about women’s health and rights and about the rural poor.

I was in Tanzania at the time of the U.S. election, and I felt a great sense of excitement and expectation. Visiting a clinic where EngenderHealth had worked before the Global Gag Rule was reinstated—a clinic that has faced years of dwindling support and difficult times—I found the few remaining staff exuding optimism.

“We believe that things will change now, that your president will understand how American policies directly affect us,” the chief doctor told me. She, like many others, hope—some even pray—that the Global Gag Rule will be lifted, that their funding and main source for contraceptive supplies will be renewed, and that they will no longer have to turn away people who walk miles to their clinic for care.

Indeed, as the United States reexamines its role in the world and the ways in which it can restore its image abroad, the value of eliminating the Global Gag Rule becomes very clear. In addition to affirming that the United States is committed to women’s health and rights, to global health and development, and to the principles of informed choice, the impact on “the street” would be significant. In rural communities across Africa, where the only clinic in an entire district may be one supported by the United States, people notice and are thankful.

To be sure, there is much more to be done to ensure that every woman has access to high-quality reproductive and maternal health care, and funding increases are needed. The simple fact is that U.S. support for overseas family planning is lower today than it was in the mid-1990s, even though demand is higher and rising every day. But first things first: I hope you will join me in calling on President-elect Obama to lift the Global Gag Rule during his first 100 days in office. Visit engenderhealth.org/globalgag to sign a petition asking for just that.

(This post also appeared on the Reproductive Health Reality Check blog.)

Raise Your Voice : End the Global Gag Rule

The Global Gag Rule has had terrible consequences for the health and lives of poor women and their families, in ways that have nothing to do with abortion. The Global Gag Rule has forced clinics to cut back on all sorts of health services, such as family planning, obstetric care, HIV testing, and malaria treatment.

Urge President-elect Obama to overturn the Global Gag Rule during his first 100 days. Watch the video, sign the petition, then spread the word.

Learn more about the Global Gag Rule.