[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 316 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 316
Promoting minority health awareness and supporting the goals and ideals
of National Minority Health Month in April 2019, which include bringing
attention to the health disparities faced by minority populations of
the United States such as American Indians, Alaska Natives, Asian
Americans, African Americans, Hispanics, and Native Hawaiians or other
Pacific Islanders.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 12, 2019
Ms. Johnson of Texas (for herself, Mr. Correa, Ms. Velazquez, Mr.
Payne, Mr. San Nicolas, Mr. Espaillat, Mr. Cummings, Mr. Takano, Ms.
Roybal-Allard, Mr. Fitzpatrick, Mrs. Beatty, Mr. Serrano, Mrs. Watson
Coleman, Ms. Gabbard, Ms. Clarke of New York, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Cox of
California, Mr. David Scott of Georgia, Mr. King of New York, Ms.
Fudge, Mr. Horsford, Ms. Lee of California, Mr. Hastings, Mrs.
Napolitano, Ms. Barragan, Ms. Haaland, Mr. Gomez, Mr. Garcia of
Illinois, Ms. Kelly of Illinois, and Ms. Adams) submitted the following
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Reform
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Promoting minority health awareness and supporting the goals and ideals
of National Minority Health Month in April 2019, which include bringing
attention to the health disparities faced by minority populations of
the United States such as American Indians, Alaska Natives, Asian
Americans, African Americans, Hispanics, and Native Hawaiians or other
Pacific Islanders.
Whereas the origin of National Minority Health Month is National Negro Health
Week, established in 1915 by Dr. Booker T. Washington;
Whereas the theme for National Minority Health Month in 2019 is ``Active and
Healthy'';
Whereas the Department of Health and Human Services has set goals and strategies
to advance the safety, health, and well-being of the people of the
United States;
Whereas a study by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, entitled
``The Economic Burden of Health Inequalities in the United States'',
concludes that, between 2003 and 2006, the combined cost of health
inequalities and premature death in the United States was
$1,240,000,000,000;
Whereas African-American women were as likely to have been diagnosed with breast
cancer as non-Hispanic White women, but African-American women were
almost 41 percent more likely to die from breast cancer than non-
Hispanic White women between 2011 and 2015;
Whereas African-American women lose their lives to cervical cancer at twice the
rate of non-Hispanic White women;
Whereas African-American men are 60 percent more likely to die from a stroke
than non-Hispanic White men;
Whereas Hispanics have higher rates of end-stage renal disease caused by
diabetes, and are 40 percent more likely to die of diabetes, than non-
Hispanic Whites;
Whereas the HIV diagnosis rate among Hispanic men is more than 3 times the HIV
diagnosis rate among non-Hispanic White men;
Whereas the HIV diagnosis rate among Hispanic women is more than 4 times the HIV
diagnosis rate among non-Hispanic White women;
Whereas, in 2016, although African Americans represented only 12 percent of the
population of the United States, African Americans accounted for 44
percent of HIV infections;
Whereas, in 2015, African-American youth accounted for an estimated 55 percent,
and Hispanic youth accounted for an estimated 24 percent, of all new HIV
infections among youth in the United States;
Whereas, in 2016, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders were 1.6 times more
likely to be diagnosed with HIV than non-Hispanic Whites;
Whereas Native Hawaiians living in the State of Hawaii are 2.4 times more likely
to be diagnosed with diabetes than non-Hispanic Whites living in Hawaii;
Whereas Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders are 30 percent more likely to be
diagnosed with cancer than non-Hispanic Whites;
Whereas, although the prevalence of obesity is high among all population groups
in the United States, in 2015, 44 percent of American Indian and Alaska
Natives, 35 percent of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders, 40 percent
of African Americans, 32 percent of Hispanics, 29 percent of non-
Hispanic Whites, and 11 percent of Asian Americans more than 18 years
old were obese (not including overweight);
Whereas, in 2015, Asian Americans were 1.7 times more likely than non-Hispanic
Whites to contract Hepatitis A;
Whereas, among all ethnic groups in 2015, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders
had the highest incidence of Hepatitis A;
Whereas Asian Americans are 2 times more likely than non-Hispanic Whites to
develop chronic Hepatitis B;
Whereas of the children living with diagnosed perinatal HIV in 2015, 64 percent
were African American, 15 percent were Hispanic, and 11 percent were
non-Hispanic Whites;
Whereas the Department of Health and Human Services has identified heart
disease, stroke, cancer, and diabetes as 4 of the 10 leading causes of
death among American Indians and Alaska Natives;
Whereas American Indians and Alaska Natives die from diabetes, alcoholism,
unintentional injuries, homicide, and suicide at higher rates than other
people in the United States;
Whereas American Indians and Alaska Natives have a life expectancy that is 4.4
years shorter than the life expectancy of the overall population of the
United States;
Whereas African-American women die from childbirth or pregnancy-related causes
at a rate that is 3 to 4 times higher than the rate for non-Hispanic
White women;
Whereas African-American babies are 3.2 times more likely than non-Hispanic
White babies to die due to complications related to low birth weight;
Whereas American Indian and Alaska Native babies are twice as likely as non-
Hispanic White babies to die from sudden infant death syndrome;
Whereas American Indian and Alaska Natives have 1.6 times the infant mortality
rate as that of non-Hispanic Whites;
Whereas American Indian and Alaska Native babies are 70 percent more likely to
die from accidental deaths before their first birthday than non-Hispanic
White babies;
Whereas sickle cell disease affects approximately 100,000 people in the United
States, occurring in approximately 1 out of every 365 African-American
births and 1 out of every 16,300 Hispanic births;
Whereas only 9.5 percent of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders, 6.8 percent
of Asian Americans, 8 percent of Hispanics, 9 percent of African
Americans, and 14 percent of American Indians and Alaska Natives
received mental health treatment or counseling in the past year,
compared to 18 percent of non-Hispanic Whites;
Whereas marked differences in the social determinants of health can lead to poor
health outcomes and declines in longevity; and
Whereas community-based health care initiatives, such as prevention-focused
programs, present a unique opportunity to use innovative approaches to
improve health practices across the United States and to reduce
disparities among racial and ethnic minority populations: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives supports the goals and
ideals of National Minority Health Month, which include bringing
attention to the health disparities faced by minority populations in
the United States, such as American Indians, Alaska Natives, Asian
Americans, African Americans, Hispanics, and Native Hawaiians or other
Pacific Islanders.
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