200 and Counting: The STAR Act Gets Three More Sponsors, but STILL Needs YOUR Help!

Children fighting childhood cancer never give up! Through the pain of illness, the discomfort of harsh treatment, and the boredom of long hospital stays, they fight with courage and strength and intensity. And these brave children need us to fight on their behalf with just as much courage and intensity. That is why we are asking you, once again, to help us fight to make the Childhood Cancer STAR Act  (Survivorship, Treatment, Access and Research (H.R. 3381/S. 1883) into law. Just yesterday (April 28, 2016), three more cosponsors added their names onto this critical bill, bringing the total number of cosponsors up to 200 in the House of Representatives alone. This means that since our last update in early November, more than 100 Representatives have recognized the critical difference this legislation can make in the ongoing fight against childhood cancer.

This is fantastic news, of course, because it means that support for this important bill is continuing to grow and gain momentum, and we are so close to our goal: we need about two dozen more cosponsors to move this bill through committee and onto a vote in the House of Representatives. Here at the ACCO, we continue to work daily to keep the momentum building, to remind all members of Congress of the critical difference this potential legislation can make for children fighting cancer. Yet we need your help; our voice alone is not enough. We ask you to help us encourage all members of Congress to support this bill and help make it law.

I Want to Help Support the STAR Act: What Can I Do?

We have identified Representatives from 17 states who have not yet added their names to the STAR Act. If you are from one of these 17 states:

• California 
• Florida
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Michigan
• Missouri
• New Jersey
• North Carolina
• Ohio
• Oregon
• Pennsylvania
• Texas
• Virginia
• West Virginia

We ask you to contact your Representative and ask them to support this bill. Below is a list of specific Representatives we would like to target, along with their Twitter handles. Tweet them today:

@(insert twitter handle) Pls support kids with cancer. Co-sign HR3381 ‪#‎STARAct for ‪#‎ChildhoodCancer. It will make a difference!

Not on Twitter? That’s ok! Send them an email, or even write a letter. Call their office directly. Or do all these things! Help us:

• Remind these Representatives that the STAR Act gives hope to all children fighting cancer today, to childhood cancer survivors who continue to suffer long-term health effects from today’s toxic treatments, and to the 1 in 285 children who will be diagnosed with cancer every year.
• Inform them that the Star Act is an important step in closing the funding gap that threatens to undermine the development of much-needed advances in treatment protocols for childhood cancer.
• Ask them for their support in ensuring adequate funding for critical research programs and clinical trials supported through the NCI’s Children’s Oncology Group, where nearly all recent gains in the fight against childhood cancer have been made.

The ACCO helped write the STAR Act to ensure the future of ongoing efforts to develop new, more effective, less toxic treatment methods for all forms of childhood cancer. We will not give up the fight to make the STAR Act into law and bring hope to childhood cancer warriors today and tomorrow, and we hope you won’t give up either…

…Because Kids Can’t Fight Cancer Alone!®

Representatives to Target:

• Fred Upton (R-MI) @RepFredUpton
• Joe Pitts (R-PA) @RepJoePitts
• Brett Guthrie (R-KY) @brettguthrie
• Ed Whitfield (R-KY) @RepEdWhitfield
• John Shimkus (R-IL) @RepShimkus
• Michael Burgess (R-TX) @michaelcburgess
• Morgan Griffith (R-VA) @RepMGriffith
• Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) @RepGusBilirakis
• Billy Long (R-MO) @USRepLong
• Renee Ellmers (R-NC) @RepReneeEllmers
• Larry Bucshon (R-IN) @RepLarryBucshon
• Greg Walden (R-OR) @repgregwalden
• Steve Scalise (R-LA) @SteveScalise
• Bob Latta (R-OH) @boblatta
• Pete Olson (R-TX) @RepPeteOlson
• David McKinley (R-WV) @RepMcKinley
• Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) @RepKinzinger
• Bill Johnson (R-OH) @RepBillJohnson
• Richard Hudson (R-NC) @RepRichHudson
• Frank Pallone (D-NJ) @FrankPallone
• Gene Green (D-TX) @RepGeneGreen
• Kurt Schrader (D-OR) @RepSchrader
• Jerry McNerney (D-CA) @RepMcNerney
• Dave Loebsack (D-IA) @daveloebsack

About the American Childhood Cancer Organization

The American Childhood Cancer Organization (ACCO) is a non-profit charity dedicated to helping kids with cancer and their families navigate the difficult journey from cancer diagnosis through survivorship.  Internationally, the ACCO is the sole US member of Childhood Cancer International (CCI), the largest patient-support organization for childhood cancer in the world.  At the national level, the ACCO promotes the critical importance of ensuring continued funding into new and better treatment protocols for childhood cancer.  At the grassroots level, the ACCO is focused on the children: developing and providing educational tools for families and learning resources for children in order to make the lives of children and their families easier and brighter during this difficult time.  Many of our resources are available free of charge for families coping with childhood cancer.

For additional information about childhood cancer or on the ACCO, or to order resources for you or your child, please visit our website at www.acco.org.