How to Contact Your Representative About Public Health Funding Cuts

The Issue

What's at Stake

The CDC, NIH, and other federal public health agencies are facing significant budget cuts and staffing reductions in 2026. These agencies fund disease surveillance, vaccine development, cancer research, infectious disease response, and public health programs that protect all Americans — regardless of their insurance status.

Cuts to public health infrastructure don't just affect government employees. They reduce the country's capacity to detect and respond to emerging disease threats, slow the development of treatments and cures, and eliminate programs that communities depend on for health education and disease prevention.

$48B

Annual NIH research budget now facing cuts

13K+

CDC employees affected by staffing reductions

$18B

In public health funding cut or frozen in 2025-2026

Take Action

How to Contact Your Representative — Step by Step

Find your representatives

Enter your ZIP code in RepReach to see your House rep and both Senators with direct phone numbers. Public health appropriations move through both chambers.

Call the district office

Public health cuts affect every district. Your call is logged and reported to the member.

Name the agency or program you care about

CDC disease surveillance, NIH cancer research, public health emergency preparedness — naming the specific program makes your call more actionable.

Follow up in writing

RepReach generates a personalized written message. A call and written follow-up on the same day is the most effective combination.

What to Say

Tips for Your Call or Email

📍

Start with your city. Public health impacts are local — your community's connection to federal public health funding matters.

🔬

Connect to research or disease if relevant. If you or someone you love has benefited from NIH-funded research, a clinical trial, or CDC disease programs, say so briefly.

🎯

Name the specific agency. CDC, NIH, SAMHSA — specificity makes your call more impactful.

⏱️

Brief is fine. Clear and under 60 seconds is ideal.

RepReach writes your script for you

Tap. Script. Call. Done.

Tell the app where you stand and add any personal details — RepReach builds a complete, personalized call or email script around your story. No blank page, no guessing what to say.

Learn More →

Common Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

What public health funding is being cut in 2026?

CDC staffing and program budgets, NIH research grants, SAMHSA mental health and addiction funding, and public health emergency preparedness programs have all faced cuts or freezes in 2025-2026. These reductions affect disease surveillance, research funding, and the country's capacity to respond to health emergencies.

Does cutting public health funding affect me personally?

Yes, even if indirectly. Public health agencies track disease outbreaks that could affect you, fund research into treatments and cures, and run programs that reduce the spread of infectious diseases in your community. Weakening this infrastructure affects everyone's health security.

Does calling about public health funding make a difference?

Yes. Public health has emerged as a high-priority constituent contact issue in 2026, and members who sit on relevant appropriations committees are especially attentive to constituent calls on this issue.

How do I find my representative's phone number?

Enter your ZIP code in the RepReach app to instantly find your House representative and both U.S. Senators with their direct district office phone numbers.

Turn awareness into action

Your voice matters. Use it.

Tap. Script. Call. Done.

RepReach finds your representatives by ZIP code and builds a personalized script around your story — so you're never staring at a blank page wondering what to say.

Learn More About RepReach →

Keep Going

How to Contact Your Representative About Public Health Funding