A letter from Mark Vossler, MD: WPSR's Board President

I am hopeful. This hope stems from changes for the better that we are seeing just recently in our state and in our country. This hope also stems from the growing influence of WPSR in making positive changes in policy for the benefit of human health. When I last wrote to you, we were in a time of chaos and uncertainty. Elected officials and agencies at nearly every level of government were failing to meet the most pressing health, social, and economic needs of our nation and Washington state. Since then, we bore witness to an all-out assault on the foundations of our very democracy: both rhetorical and literal.

The chaos has not subsided. The uncertainty remains. For example, it wasn’t until this month that the losing candidate in the Governor’s race withdrew his case against our voting system and excessive force by over-militarized police was on display again at the end of January in Tacoma.

This chaos and all our work happens against a backdrop of the threat of nuclear war, an accelerating climate crisis, decreasing life expectancy driven largely by economic inequity, an uncontrolled pandemic, white supremacy, and police violence.

It is easy to fall into the trap of despair. There are days that I find myself overwhelmed and I’m sure I’m not alone. But I am hopeful. We have turned a corner, with a new administration in the White House, a new Congress, and a state government taking seriously the issues that affect human health, coupled with higher levels of citizen engagement than I have seen in my lifetime.

With this change in government, we have a unique opportunity to advance the type of social and policy change required to improve the health of our state, nation, and world. The issues that WPSR is working on with your support & engagement are top of mind right now for both the general public and many of our elected officials.

Our Governor and state legislature named climate change, economic inequity, progressive revenue, and racial justice as priority issues for this session. Based on the bills submitted to date, they appear to be quite serious about this mission. We are delighted to know that WPSR’s top priority issues for state-level actions are what they are working on. This is no accident: WPSR, along with its partners have been working assiduously for years to make our policymakers aware that these issues are truly urgent for the health of Washingtonians and our communities, and - literally - for human survival on this one planet that we have.

At a federal level, President Biden’s advisors and cabinet picks, including John Kerry and Gina McCarthy, convey a seriousness about climate change and a more diplomatic approach to foreign policy. Additionally, he is taking public health seriously and empowering an aggressive, science-based COVID response. He specifically called out the problem of white supremacy in his inaugural address and seems keen on promoting racial justice and combating economic inequity. The United States is back in the WHO and the Paris Agreement. There is a serious willingness to address the climate crisis by executive order, and a slow but steadily growing awareness in Congress that this crisis is real.

After years of frustration, the movement to abolish nuclear weapons is also gaining momentum. The Treaty to Prohibit Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) has just entered into force, a treaty recognized in over 80 nations that bans any engagement with, development of, or use of nuclear weapons in any nation around the world. This puts the United States and other nuclear-armed nations in violation of international law and increases the pressure for us to make serious reductions in our arsenals.

The NewSTART treaty has been renewed with Russia after coming dangerously close to expiring. Yet the danger remains, and we cannot take our foot off the pedal while one person’s finger is on the button. As we have long advocated, no single person should have sole discretion to destroy life on this planet. With nuclear weapons on the policy agenda again, we must push for re-engagement with Iran, a no first use policy, redirecting absurd levels of nuclear spending to critical social needs, and ultimately on reducing our nuclear arsenal.

We have our dedicated core of health professionals and others working on our three task forces uniquely positions WPSR to make the cause of human health and survival a driving rationale for necessary social change. The depth and influence of our bench is what enables us to be present when our partners in advocacy need the health voice, positions us for frequent publication in the media, and equips us to have a meaningful impact on elected officials.

For our volunteers to be maximally effective we need staff to organize the effort. For the first time in our history, we have five full-time staff members, including an organizer for each of our programs and task forces. Our work is made possible in part by the generosity of our membership and donors. Thanks to your ongoing financial support, we find ourselves on solid ground and we are in a position to expand our advocacy efforts at a time when they are needed more than ever.

What's next for WPSR in 2021? For the next six months, expect WPSR to be focused on full-court-press advocacy in Olympia on legislation that will promote economic equality, environmental justice, and racial justice. Right now, there are important bills in the legislature that could establish a clean fuel standard, a building electrification standard, and an update of the growth management plan that includes a mandate to include environmental justice for low-income communities and BIPOC communities. We are also tenaciously advocating for a capital gains tax and an expanded Working Families Tax Credit. Following our victory stopping the world’s largest methanol refinery in Kalama, we will continue to oppose dangerous fossil gas projects such as the fracked gas plant in Tacoma in public testimony, in print, and in court.

On the heels of nuclear policy wins including the TPNW, New Start renewal, and securing Medicaid access for Marshallese victims of nuclear testing, we will continue to serve as the financial sponsor and operations lead of WANW, the Washington Against Nuclear Weapons coalition.

WANW is the largest coalition of its kind in the country, and we will continue adding member organizations in every Congressional district in our state to push elected officials to be proponents of nuclear abolition. Through the coalition and our task force, we will meet with each of our Members of Congress to advocate for reductions in the nuclear arsenal, a no first use policy, and an end to presidential sole authority. We will continue to be an ally to the many frontline communities who continue to suffer the brunt of the legacy of nuclear weapons production and testing, including the Spokane and Yakima Tribes, victims of radioactive pollution and radiation poisoning from uranium mining, weapons production, and waste storage right here in Washington. This also the large Pacific Northwest Marshallese population, whose health and native home have been irreparably harmed by US weapons testing.

We, at WPSR, are finding ourselves broadening our sphere of influence and our ability to effectively advocate for policies that address the social determinants of health. In order to continue this work, we will need your continued partnership as donors, contributors, and advocates.

I hope that you will all be able to join us at the Health Justice Gala on March 6 and make a generous contribution so we can continue to bring the health voice to bear on the gravest threats to human health and survival.

We invite you to be a part of this effort. Your time, talent, and financial support make the work of WPSR possible.

Thank you to everyone who supports our efforts with your time, talent, and financial support. I am deeply grateful for all that you do. You give me hope.

Mark Vossler, MD
Board President
mark@wpsr.org | 206 547 2630