John,

For the first time in the twenty-first century, global child mortality among children under five is rising.[1] Sadly, this is the predictable result of government cuts that gutted life-saving programs abroad. According to new reporting, reductions in international aid are now directly contributing to higher death rates among children under five worldwide. Millions of families are losing access to vaccines, clean water, nutrition programs, and basic medical interventions that had driven historic progress for decades.

These deaths are avoidable. They are happening because the Trump administration initiated severe reductions in foreign aid, eliminated USAID, undermined global health initiatives, and openly attacked the very infrastructure designed to keep vulnerable children alive―and because Republicans chose tax cuts for billionaires over the lives of children.

Congress has allowed the crisis to grow while the wealthiest Americans enjoy lavish new tax breaks.

The scale of loss is staggering. Experts warn that the world is on the brink of a full reversal of years of progress in child survival. Deaths among children under five, which had fallen by nearly 60 percent globally since 1990, are now beginning to rise again for the first time this century. No parent should be forced to watch their child die because wealthy nations refuse to fund basic healthcare.

Congress has the power to stop this. Restoring and expanding foreign aid and taxing the rich to fund global child survival programs can save millions of children right now. The resources exist. That is why we need your voice.

Tell Congress to tax the rich, save the children, and increase foreign aid funding now.

Every dollar cut from international health programs means fewer vaccines delivered, fewer clinics staffed, and fewer lives saved. The United States once led the world in funding the fight against preventable child deaths. That leadership has evaporated. Philanthropy cannot backfill the resources that Congress removed. The result is a deadly vacuum.

Foreign aid is one of the most cost-effective life-saving investments available to Congress. For a tiny fraction of what we spend on tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy, we can restore the progress we once championed. Vaccination campaigns, nutrition assistance, clean water access, emergency care, and maternal health programs all depend on consistent U.S. support. Without it, deaths rise. The evidence is already here.

Demand that lawmakers restore global health programs, rebuild USAID, and make the ultra-rich pay their fair share to save millions of vulnerable children worldwide.

Together we can ensure billionaire tax breaks do not come before children’s lives.

David Kass
Executive Director
Americans for Tax Fairness Action Fund