May 5, 2020 to Members of the United States Senate and House Of
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May 5, 2020 To Members of the United States Senate and House of Representatives: Wisconsin’s primary election on April 7th of this year was an expression of the democratic spirit in a crisis, as thousands lined up to fulfill their civic duty. The right to vote is an essential element of our democracy and Americans should not have to choose between their rights of citizenship and their own health. For epidemiologists and public health experts, Wisconsin’s election took on other meanings, alarming many of us who have devoted ourselves to combating infectious diseases for all of our professional lives. Despite the Wisconsin Governor’s plan to delay the election until June because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the state legislature and the state supreme court refused to allow this postponement. Thus, many of us in public health looked on with horror as thousands of people in Wisconsin were forced to choose between exercising their right to vote and staying home to protect themselves from exposure to the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2; those choosing the former were imperiling their own lives by voting in person that day. Though there were new cases of COVID-19 among those who voted in person that day and those who worked at the polls in Wisconsin, the impact of the decision to go ahead with the primary on April 7th on the spread of the disease may never be known. However, as Dr. Ben Weston, the Medical Director for the Milwaukee County Office of Emergency Management, has said: "While we continue to monitor cases of Covid-19 linked to election activity, we know that gatherings such as (the election) are detrimental to the efforts to slow the spread of this pandemic." Americans should never again be asked to choose between performing one of the most hallowed obligations and privileges of citizenship—voting for our representatives at the local, state and federal levels—and our health. This November 2020, we have a Presidential election before us. We also have the prospect of a resurgence of the coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, which to date has killed nearly 70,000 Americans and infected more than one million people in the United States. Both the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Robert Redfield, the Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr. Anthony Fauci, along with many other scientists, have warned about the possibility of a resurgence of SARS-CoV2 this fall. Furthermore, until an effective vaccine is developed and widely administered in the US, intermittent outbreaks of COVID-19 may reoccur at least until 2022. The potential for reoccurrences of SARS-CoV-2 will require new rounds of social distancing to keep each outbreak in check. In order to ensure the integrity of the electoral process and protect the public health at the same time, it is incumbent on our leaders to prepare for a Presidential election by mail, in which ballots are sent to all registered voters, to allow them to vote from home and ensure their health and safety in the event of a new outbreak of SARS-CoV-2. Several states already conduct most elections by mail, and many states are preparing for by-mail voting in the fall. However, states will need resources to rapidly prepare to ensure that a vote-by-mail option is available to all voters. The costs of this effort—for ballot printing, postage costs, dropboxes for absentee ballots and appropriate security, secure electronic absentee ballot request technology, ballot tracking, improvements to absentee ballot processing, including additional facilities and staffing—are estimated to total $4 billion and will require a Congressional appropriation to support this work. In addition, while we hope most Americans will have the opportunity to vote by mail, maintaining the safety of in- person voting will also be required for November 2020, as well as subsequent elections as long as SARS-CoV-2 circulates in the US. These additional measures, including those that ensure polling facilities that meet public health standards, will entail $271.4 million in federal funds. Members of Congress must ensure funding for the rapid scale-up of by-mail voting nationwide in time for the 2020 Presidential election, and our local and state election officials must do all they can to support American citizens’ right to vote, while protecting them from SARS-CoV-2 infection, from spreading the virus during a pandemic. The right to vote should not have to be sacrificed or compromised to ensure our health and safety. If you act now, we can all vote without fear of acquiring or spreading COVID-19 as we exercise this fundamental democratic right in November 2020. Respectfully yours, Name Title Institution Yale School of Public Health and Yale Law Gregg Gonsalves, PhD Associate Professor School Carl T. Bergstrom, PhD Professor University of Washington Laurie Litman, MS President 350 Sacramento John Beardsley, BA, LMT Retired 350 Seattle Michael O'Loughlin, PhD Professor Adelphi University Scott Pytluk, PhD Core Faculty Adler University Amelia Hausauer, MD Director of Dermatology Aesthetx Jeffrey Bruce Hillenberg, PhD Psychologist Affiliated Psychologists of Michigan Katherine E. Ginsbach, MS, JD Medical- Legal Partnership Attorney Alaska Native Medical Center George Shaw, MD Physician Allegheny Health Network Carly M. Goldstein, PhD Assistant Professor (Research) Alpert Medical School of Brown University Donna M. Staton, MD, Pediatrician and Director of International MPH Community Access to Child Health Program American Academy of Pediatrics Linda Garcia-Shelton, Clinical Psychologist, and Public Health American Board of Professional Psychology PhD, MHSA Practitioner Foundation Kitturah Schomberg- Klaiss, DO Physician American Family Care Phyllis Rifkin-Russell, LMHC, CGP Psychotherapist American Group Psychotherapy Association Linda Garcia- Shelton, PhD, MHSA Clinical Health Psychologist American Psychological Association Joyce R. Gaufin, BS Former President American Public Health Association Thespina Yamanis, MPH, PhD Associate Professor American University Michael Friedman, MPH, PhD Assistant Professor American University of Antigua Marie Coignet, PhD Epidemiologist, Staff Scientist AncestryDNA Adam Hege, PhD, MPA Professor Appalachian State University Gregory N. Shrader, PhD Psychologist Arizona State University Mindy McEntee, PhD Postdoctoral Scholar Arizona State University Arnhold Institute for Global Health, Icahn Duncan Maru, MD, PhD Senior Faculty School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Janet K. Ashworth, PhD Clinical Psychologist Ashworth Psychological Services, PLLC Winnifred Cutler, PhD President and Founder Athena Institute for Women's Wellness Mark S Lowenthal, Psy.D Licensed Psychologist Barnabas Health Hoda J Badr, PhD Associate Professor Baylor College of Medicine Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Marisa Hilliard, PhD Associate Professor of Pediatrics Children's Hospital Susan Cheng, PhD, MPH Department Chair and Associate Professor Benedictine University Georgeen Polyak, PhD Associate Professor Benedictine University Mary Walsh, M.Ed. Teacher Big Lake High School Jennifer Thompson, MD Clinical Program Leader Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Stephen Soldz, PhD Professor Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis Boston Health Care for the Homeless Mardge Cohen, MD Physician Program Benjamin P Linas, MD, Boston Medical Center and Boston MPH Associate Professor University Jonathan Shaffer PhD Candidate Boston University Jacob Bor, SD Assistant Professor Boston University Avik Chatterjee, MD, MPH Assistant Professor Boston University School of Medicine Carolina Herrera, MA Doctoral Candidate Boston University School of Public Health Jennifer Weuve, MPH, ScD Associate Professor Boston University School of Public Health Calpurnyia Roberts, Boston’s Mayor’s Office of Workforce PhD Senior Policy Manager Development Morgan Shields, Ph.D. (expected 2020) PhD Candidate Brandeis University Research Investigator and Assistant Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Elizabeth Janiak, ScD Professor Medical School Rachel Mealy, M.S. Doctoral student Brown University Stephanie Catanese, Physician and Assistant Professor of MD Medicine Brown University Josiah D. Rich, MD, MPH Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology Brown University Anashua Rani Elwy, Brown University, Warren Alpert Medical PhD Associate Professor School Brown University, Warren Alpert Medical Sarah Hsu Medical Student School Andrea Boggio, JSD Professor Bryant University David Bezanson, PhD Clinical Psychologist Neuropsychologist CA Climate Health Now Christopher T. Kondo, PhD Professor Cal State Fullerton California Polytechnic State University, Michael Latner, PhD Professor, Research Scientist Union of Concerned Scientists Adele R. Amodeo, MPH Executive Director California Public Health Association-North Lissa Lim, PhD Psychologist California State University San Marcos Jay Robertson-Howell, Psy.D. Psychologist California State University, San Marcos Juan Alvarez, PhD Psychologist California State University, San Marcos Allie P Laurie Jr, M.A. Psychology Intern California State University, San Marcos Cambridge Health Alliance / Harvard Andrew Choi, PhD Psychology Postdoctoral Fellow Medical School Stacey Benson, PhD Managing Health Scientist Cardno ChemRisk Naseem Dillman-Hasso, BA Lab Manager Carleton College Margaret Falbo, DNP Adjunct faculty Carnegie Mellon University Alan D. Levine, PhD Professor Case Western Reserve University Kevin K. Makino, MD, PhD Post-pediatric child psychiatry fellow Case Western Reserve University