It’s time to channel our outrage into action
Our family was forever changed when our daughter, Elle, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes shortly after her eighth birthday. It was Thanksgiving, and I can still see the room we were in at Boston’s Children’s Hospital. I vividly remember sitting on an old radiator under a tall window in the middle of the night as Elle slept attached to machines and too many tubes. That night, I felt the despair shared by any parent who is powerless to prevent their child’s suffering. And every night since, for the last 17 years, I have worried about our daughter’s health and safety.
A century ago, Type 1 diabetes would have been a death sentence. Today, this is a disease Elle and more than one million other Americans can live with because of discoveries made possible, in part, through publicly-funded research. The United States has always been the place where innovation and science lead the way to life-changing discoveries and medical advancements. In fact, investments in medical research are responsible for recent breakthroughs in cancer treatments, diabetes care, and numerous other chronic conditions.
Now, Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. are making devastating cuts to medical research and jeopardizing the progress being made to find new treatments and ultimately cure numerous diseases. From cancer research to vaccinations, they are carelessly ending promising clinical trials and endangering public health while throwing away some of the best doctors and scientists in our country to give tax cuts to billionaires. By eliminating the possibility for better treatments and cures, the Trump administration threatens America’s standing as the world leader in global innovation as they steal our hope. I refuse to stand by and watch while they risk the safety of our children and destroy the promise of better days ahead for our families.
Musk, Trump and Kennedy Jr., are taking their chainsaw to healthcare for everyone. Community health centers, which, here in New Hampshire, serve more than 90,000 people — particularly children who have no other source of medical care are facing devastating cuts. More than 180,000 people in New Hampshire rely on Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program.
Health care is already too expensive. If Trump succeeds in slashing Medicaid and imposing his across-the-board tariffs, it will be a financial one-two punch for working families. Annual medical costs for everyone will spike, straining already tight family budgets.
Cuts to organizations like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will impact all of us by leaving state and local health officials without critical information and guidance, on even the most basic health threats, like the flu, all while measles is surging. It is criminal that in the United States of America two children have already died from measles and there are more than 1,000 active cases in the country right now. This is a disease that we know how to prevent and we eradicated before, but it is back and threatens to take even more lives.
I could not prevent Elle’s diagnosis, but inspired by her strength and determination, I have helped people with chronic conditions live safer and healthier lives. I started a small business to connect people with the support they need to feel better and meet their body’s nutritional needs. This led me to work with doctors and researchers at hospitals and in labs across the country who have dedicated their lives to accelerating treatments for the most costly diseases.
Now, I’m part of an effort, in Manchester, New Hampshire, to deliver next generation therapies and even cures for some of the toughest health problems — from treating injured war fighters to diabetes, lung disease and many others. Not only is this the right thing to do, but the National Institutes of Health estimates that for every $1 invested in research, more than $2.50 in economic activity is generated. It’s a win-win.
Living with constant threats to the health and safety of children is something that I will never accept, because it doesn’t have to be this way. America leads the world in scientific discoveries for health care. The best treatments for everything exist here because most were developed here. We will not be able to recover what is being stolen from us right now. It is not enough to keep our heads down and try to work through this chaos, cruelty and corruption. There is simply too much at stake. No family will be left untouched. It is time to channel our outrage into action.
Stefany Shaheen lives in Portsmouth and is a former member of the City Council and Police Commission.
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