Mission Moment April — 2018

THANK YOU!

We want to thank everyone who generously supported us during our second annual American Lung Association Giving Week – April 16-20! Your support makes our lifesaving mission possible, and responding with your generous donations during this special week shows that you treasure healthy air and healthy lungs, especially for our children. At the Lung Association, we are dedicated to honoring the trust you put in us, and are proud that 86 cents out of every dollar you give goes to program services.

'State of the Air' Report

On April 18, we released our 19th annual national "report card" on outdoor air quality. "State of the Air" 2018 finds that 4 in 10 Americans live in counties with unhealthful levels of air pollution, putting them at risk for serious health effects like lung cancer, asthma attacks, cardiovascular damage and premature death. Thanks to the success of the Clean Air Act, we have seen continued improvements in both ozone pollution and year-round particle pollution. However, the effects of climate change and efforts by the president and Congress to weaken the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) threaten future progress in protecting the air we all share. Read more and learn how you can help.

LUNG CANCER

Things are Turning Turquoise in May! Turquoise is the color of LUNG FORCE, and this May 6-12, LUNG FORCE will celebrate the fifth annual Turquoise Takeover, National Women's Lung Health Week. During the week, watch for local landmarks to be illuminated in turquoise, national and local newscasters to don turquoise and other Turquoise Takeover happenings, all in recognition of National Women’s Lung Health Month and our LUNG FORCE initiative to battle lung cancer.

LUNG FORCE Events: LUNG FORCE Expo, Walk and Run/Walk season is here! LUNG FORCE Expos are a great opportunity to learn more about the latest trends, resources and research surrounding lung cancer, COPD, asthma and other lung diseases. A LUNG FORCE Walk or Run/Walk is a terrific way to get out and raise awareness and funds to help defeat lung cancer and for lung health. Each dollar raised gets us closer to healthy lungs for everyone. Find an event near you.

LUNG FORCE Hero: Our LUNG FORCE Heroes inspire, encourage and empower us to raise our voices for lung health. If you want to understand why we're fighting lung cancer, just read the story of LUNG FORCE Hero Christine M who spurs herself on with the nickname "Christine Strong!"

RESEARCH

Lung Association Research Published

Lung Association Research Team member, Dr. Bria M. Coates's study, Impact of NOD-like Receptor Signaling in Juvenile Influenza was recently published in the Journal of Immunology. The Influenza Type A (IAV) viruses infect people, birds, pigs, horses and other animals. IAV is a highly contagious virus, and causes respiratory tract infections in up to 40 percent of children each year. Co-funded with the American Thoracic Society, Dr. Coates’s preclinical trial worked to determine the effectiveness of three drugs in reducing the severity of IAV infection. Results from the study provide insight into severe IAV infection in children and supports the use of medications to treat children with IAV-induced severe lung injury.

SPECIAL EVENTS

Are You up for a Challenge? It's Fight For Air Climb time again! Challenge yourself with a stair climb event. As a participant, you can pick your pace - walk, run or race up the stairs of a skyscraper, or volunteer to support the event. Climbs are a fantastic opportunity to help raise funds to support the lifesaving mission of the Lung Association. Find a Climb near you.

ADVOCACY

Funding Health Programs: Last month, LUNG FORCE Heroes from all 50 states visited nearly 200 members of Congress, to ask them to support $38.1 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in fiscal year 2019 and protect patients with pre-existing conditions, including lung cancer. Thanks to their efforts, we will likely see an even higher amount for research in fiscal year (FY) 2019 than we'd hoped for, as we’ve just learned that Congress will fund NIH at $37.1 million in FY 2018. This means NIH will be positioned for even more funding in FY 2019. We can all be proud of playing a part in this remarkable victory that will have a positive impact on the future health of countless Americans.

Protecting Healthy Air: Our advocates across the country have been active on multiple fronts fighting efforts to weaken the Clean Air Act and reduce its ability to give us cleaner, healthier air. One front is an effort to weaken clean vehicle standards. Our recent polling shows that Americans are heavily in favor of clean car standards that protect public health. We've continued to oppose efforts to roll back the Clean Power Plan. Many of our staff and volunteers have testified at Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) hearings across the country to reinforce the importance of this plan which provides lifesaving air pollution reductions, including the first federal limits on carbon pollution from power plants. Learn more in this op-ed in CNN by our President and CEO Harold Wimmer and the American Thoracic Society Executive Director Stephen Crane. Parents and grandparents can help by signing this letter by April 24.

Healthy Air Campaign at Climate & Health Solutions Conference: On April 9 and 10, our Healthy Air Campaign co-sponsored the Climate & Health Solutions Conference, organized by the Medical Society Consortium on Climate & Health. The conference was attended by Lung Association staff and volunteers.  During the conference, the Lung Association helped coordinate around 100 Capitol Hill visits with more than 20 states and more than 80 health professionals to advocate for healthy air and climate change protections.

Standing Up for Patients with Pre-Existing Conditions: Patients with pre-existing conditions, like lung cancer and COPD, need affordable, quality health coverage plans, and the short-term limited duration plans being promoted across the country are not the solution. On April 11, the Lung Association and a coalition of health partners held a briefing to educate Congressional members and their staffs about how these health plans fail to meet the coverage needs of millions of patients and could result in the loss of coverage or an unacceptable increase in premiums.

Action on Tobacco: In late March, the Lung Association and health partners filed suit in court to end a delay in Federal Drug Administration review of e-cigarettes, cigars and other tobacco products that violated the law and keeps kid-friendly tobacco products on the market for years. On April 5, an article co-authored by the Lung Association appeared in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention prestigious journal, the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. "State Medicaid Coverage for Tobacco Cessation Treatments and Barriers to Accessing Treatments — United States, 2015–2017" looks at state Medicaid programs coverage of tobacco cessation treatment and barriers to access in 2015 and 2017. The article shows that while all states are covering some tobacco cessation treatments for all standard Medicaid enrollees, there is still more that can be done to help smokers on Medicaid quit.

EACH Breath Blog

Our award-winning EACH Breath blog continues to explore the latest in lung health, such as why we need idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis research now more than ever, the latest attack on oil and gas pollution protections, and a recap of our spectacular LUNG FORCE Advocacy Day which helped make lifesaving gains in lung cancer policy and research funding.

Your generous support makes everything we do possible! THANK YOU for all you do to support healthy air and healthy lungs. With your help, we are working to help those who suffer from lung disease today, and to stop the spread of lung disease tomorrow.