On September 20, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed the Water for the World Act, which would enable the United States, to help provide 100 million people around the world access to sustainable – and lifesaving – water and sanitation services.

Now, this landmark bill is in the House of Representatives, but time is running out to pass it. Right now, the House is rushing to complete their work before recessing in October.

Simply put: your help is needed to bring the bill to a vote.

Access to safe water and sanitation lies at the root of achieving the Millennium Development Goals by 2015. If we do not achieve the goal of halving the number of people living without access to safe water and sanitation, we will not achieve many of the other targets, such as establishing universal primary education, eradicating hunger or reducing child mortality.

For women and girls in less developed countries, water and sanitation are critical issues. All across the world, women and girls walk miles carrying back-breaking loads of water for their families. School girls are often doubly-affected. They miss school in order to gather water. And girls are less likely to attend school when the school is lacking clean water and proper sanitation and hygiene facilities. But it doesn’t have to be this way. A study carried out by CARE and Emory University in western Kenya found that access to these vital resources reduced school absenteeism in girls by 37 percent.

For new mothers, access to safe water is critical as well. In sub-Saharan Africa alone, diarrheal disease caused by lack of access to safe water and proper sanitation is the leading killer of children under 5 years old. But we know when women can access safe water and sanitation facilities, they have healthier families and more time to devote to education and business endeavors. In essence, women become more productive members of society, helping lift themselves, their families and their communities out of poverty for good.

We must act fast to ensure that the Water for the World Act is voted on in the House before the fall recess.

The time for the United States to make real progress on this critical health issue is now! Please let your representatives hear that you expect them to take action to save the lives – and protect the dignity – of millions of the world’s poorest people.

Thank you!