[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 86 (Thursday, May 24, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S2940]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    SENATE RESOLUTION 529--PROMOTING MINORITY HEALTH AWARENESS AND 
 SUPPORTING THE GOALS AND IDEALS OF NATIONAL MINORITY HEALTH MONTH IN 
APRIL 2018, WHICH INCLUDE BRINGING ATTENTION TO THE HEALTH DISPARITIES 
  FACED BY MINORITY POPULATIONS OF THE UNITED STATES SUCH AS AMERICAN 
     INDIANS, ALASKAN NATIVES, ASIAN AMERICANS, AFRICAN AMERICANS, 
       HISPANICS, AND NATIVE HAWAIIANS OR OTHER PACIFIC ISLANDERS

  Mr. CARDIN (for himself, Mr. Scott, Mr. Booker, Mr. Rubio, Ms. 
Hirono, Mr. Cassidy, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Barrasso, Mr. Brown, Mr. Markey, 
Mr. Sanders, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Wyden, Ms. Duckworth, and Ms. 
Klobuchar) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and 
agreed to:

                              S. Res. 529

       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 
     2018 is ``Partnering for Health Equity'';
       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 Alaskan 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 
     Alaskan Natives;
       Whereas American Indians and Alaskan Natives die from 
     diabetes, alcoholism, unintentional injuries, homicide, and 
     suicide at higher rates than other people in the United 
     States;
       Whereas American Indians and Alaskan 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 Alaskan Native babies are twice 
     as likely as non-Hispanic White babies to die from sudden 
     infant death syndrome;
       Whereas American Indian and Alaskan Natives have 1.6 times 
     the infant mortality rate as that of non-Hispanic Whites;
       Whereas American Indian and Alaskan 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 Senate supports the goals and ideals of 
     National Minority Health Month in April 2018, which include 
     bringing attention to the health disparities faced by 
     minority populations in the United States, such as American 
     Indians, Alaskan Natives, Asian Americans, African Americans, 
     Hispanics, and Native Hawaiians or other Pacific Islanders.

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