[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 160 (Thursday, November 6, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S14177-S14178]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. DASCHLE (for himself, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Bingaman, Mr. 
        Akaka, Mrs. Clinton, Mr. Corzine, Mr. Dodd, Mr. Durbin, Mr. 
        Edwards, Mr. Inouye, Mr. Kerry, Mr. Lautenberg, Mr. Lieberman, 
        Ms. Mikulski, Mrs. Murray, and Mr. Schumer):
  S. 1833. A bill to improve the health of minority individuals; to the 
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, 40 years ago, the famous and 
inspirational civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer rallied the Nation 
with her statement ``I am sick and tired of being sick and tired.'' Her 
words still resonate with millions of Americans today. Whether we are 
talking about African Americans, Latinos, Asian Americans or American 
Indians, the fact is that minorities continue to live sicker and die 
younger in America. We know that African Americans are one-third more 
likely than all other Americans to die from cancer. They have the 
highest rate of hypertension in the world. Latinos have the least 
insurance, with one in three having no coverage at all. American Indian 
tribes struggle with what can only be called epidemics of diabetes, 
with rates near 50 percent in certain tribes. The tremendous gains that 
we have witnessed in science and medicine have benefited millions of 
our citizens, but too often they are out of reach for minorities.
  It is a privilege to join my colleagues to introduce the Healthcare 
Equality and Accountability Act. Our goal is to produce major 
improvements in all aspects of minority health care. It expands health 
insurance coverage. It supports better access to services that are 
culturally and linguistically appropriate. It strengthens the safety-
net. It promotes the development of new and better ways to treat 
diseases that disproportionately affect minorities.
  It also increases the diversity of the health care workforce. Many 
studies show that minority health professionals dramatically increase 
access to care and the delivery of good care to

[[Page S14178]]

minority patients. Despite their importance, however, the percentage of 
minority health professionals is shockingly low. African Americans, 
Latinos and American Indians account for almost 25 percent of the 
Nation's population--but they account for less than 10 percent of the 
Nation's doctors, less than 5 percent of dentists, and only 12 percent 
of nurses.
  Our bill will increase the number of minority health professionals by 
expanding existing pipeline programs and developing new ones. It also 
provides additional scholarship support to enable more minority and 
low-income students to make their careers in health care.
  Another critical need addressed by this bill is accountability. It 
holds health care agencies and institutions, public and private, 
accountable for the care delivered to their minority populations as 
well as their health outcomes. It reauthorizes the Office of Minority 
Health, increases the effectiveness of the Office for Civil Rights and 
establishes a new Office for Health Disparities within the Office for 
Civil Rights. It also establishes compliance offices in each of the 
Federal agencies, to ensure that the policies, programs and practices 
of each agency are in compliance with title VI of the Civil Rights Act, 
which prohibits discrimination based on race, ethnicity or national 
origin.
  We can't just talk about racial and ethnic health disparities. We 
have to do more to eliminate them. All Americans deserve fair and 
equitable treatment in health care. The administration has said time 
and time again that it is committed to improving minority health. But, 
the President's own budget eliminated all funds for workforce diversity 
training programs, and all funds for the Community Access Program, 
despite the overwhelming evidence that minority health providers and 
community health centers dramatically improve access to care and 
quality of care for minority populations. The President's budget also 
reduced funds for the Office of Minority Health, and it has made the 
Office for Civil Rights virtually powerless to carry out its mission.
  Vast numbers of minority Americans are needlessly suffering because 
of administration's neglect. We cannot turn our back on the needs of 
nearly one-third of the Nation's population. Whether we are talking 
about health insurance, language access, disease prevention, or public 
hospitals and community health centers, the need is great and the time 
is now. I urge my colleagues to support this bill, so that we do what 
is so clearly needed to improve the health and health care for millions 
of minority Americans.
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