Today, more than 120 organizations from across the country sent a letter to the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) asking for an immediate nationwide moratorium on water shutoffs to protect people from COVID-19.
Water shutoffs pose a real threat to people's health — now more than ever. With negotiations over the next COVID-19 relief bill all but suspended until after the election, hundreds of thousands of people across the country are at risk of losing the water they need to wash their hands and protect themselves. Can you imagine struggling to get through each day without running water?
Rianna Eckel
Senior Maryland Organizer
Food & Water Action and Food & Water Watch
John,
I’m frustrated to be writing another email about this, but the GOP-controlled Senate has failed us yet again in protecting our most basic human rights during this pandemic.
As Trump continues to interfere with plans for negotiations on a new coronavirus stimulus bill and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell refuses to help local governments, hundreds of thousands of people across the country are at risk of water shutoffs because high water rates are making water bills unaffordable. More than 180 local and state protections against water shutoffs have expired, meaning an estimated 177 million people are left without any protections from water shutoffs.
But this isn’t where we give up. Since the GOP-controlled Senate isn't protecting millions of Americans, we’re taking the next critical action by calling on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to issue an immediate nationwide moratorium on water shutoffs to help protect people from COVID-19.
Last Monday, the House Oversight Committee sent a letter to the director of the CDC asking him to impose a moratorium on water shutoffs during the pandemic. We need your help to amplify that request. The CDC can use their authority as part of the Public Health Services Act to impose a nationwide moratorium on water shutoffs for nonpayment during the pandemic. This includes service restoration for all households previously disconnected.
It’s no surprise that research from We the People of Detroit identified a direct correlation between zip codes with the highest rates of water shutoffs and the highest COVID-19 cases in their city. Water shutoffs pose a real threat to human health — now more than ever.
Given that the CDC’s top recommendation to help stop the spread of COVID-19 is frequent hand washing, it’s inexcusable that our government has prevented people from being able to follow this critical advice. Everyone needs water for disinfection and sanitation. It’s time for the CDC to step in — send a message now to fight for water for all!
Right now, households and communities without water are increasingly vulnerable to the rampant spread of COVID-19. As you’re reading this, thousands of people could be struggling to get through the day without running water. We need this dangerous and unjust reality to come to an end.
When this pandemic started, we decided we needed to draw attention to the fact that people were losing their access to safe, clean water, and we took action to fight for as many local and state water shutoff moratoria as possible. At the peak, two-thirds of the country was protected from water shutoffs. We have fought for water and won before, and we can fight for water and win again.
No one should be denied their basic human right to water, especially during a pandemic. Access to water is not just an urgent issue for protecting public health and safety; it's also about economic justice for our most vulnerable residents.
Mary Grant
Public Water For All Campaign Director
Food & Water Action and Food & Water Watch
Food & Water Action and its affiliated organization, Food & Water Watch, are advocacy groups with a common mission to protect our food, water and climate. This email was sent to [email protected] - and we're glad you got it, because it's one of the most important ways you can reclaim political power, hold elected officials accountable and resist corporate control.
