(Insert Date)

It is time to finish what was started 50 years ago with the Salk vaccine trials, and eradicate polio forever. Even though the last case of polio in the U.S. was in 1979, the crippling disease still exists in a dozen of the world’s poorest countries. The largest global health initiative in history is in full gear, with the goal of vaccinating every child by 2005. What the world learns from the polio eradication effort, if successful, will be key to helping realize solutions to other global health crises such as HIV/AIDS.

Since 1988, some 2 billion children have been immunized against polio, thanks to the unprecedented cooperation of over 200 countries and 20 million volunteers who have been backed by international investment. But today, there is a $200 million shortfall to finish the job.

Polio is highly infectious and can cripple or kill a child within a few hours. It is difficult to track and prevent, and most infected people have no signs of illness and may unknowingly infect thousands more people before the first case of paralysis occurs. In countries like Sudan, Nigeria and India, a child stricken with polio faces a life begging in the streets. We live in a connected world and unless polio is eradicated, it will always be only one flight away.

I call on our government and the world’s richest nations to commit the necessary funds to allow health workers to finish off polio once and for all. I encourage readers to visit www.lastchild.org to learn more about the global polio eradication effort.

Sincerely,

(Insert your name and contact information)

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