    [United States Statutes at Large, Volume 132, 115th Congress, 2nd Session]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    Proclamation 9797 of September 28, 2018

    Child Health Day, 2018

    By the President of the United States of America

    A Proclamation

    On Child Health Day, we renew our commitment to ensuring the health and
    well-being of our young people, who are the future of our great country.
    All children deserve to grow up in loving homes with parents or
    guardians who are dedicated to empowering them to live healthy, safe,
    and successful lives.
    My Administration is actively working to create environments in which
    families can grow stronger and children can realize their full
    potential. Earlier this year, I signed into law a 5-year authorization
    of the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program,
    which helps at-risk families get off to a better and healthier start
    with evidence-based home visiting programs. Home visiting programs help
    prevent child abuse and neglect, support positive parenting, improve
    maternal and child health, and promote child development and school
    readiness. Additionally, through the Be Best initiative, led by First
    Lady Melania Trump, we are helping to address some of the most prevalent
    challenges facing children, including destructive online habits,
    bullying, mental health, and alcohol and drug abuse. Further, we are
    strengthening our public health and safety response to the opioid
    crisis. One of the many tragic consequences of opioid addiction is
    neonatal abstinence syndrome, which poses risks to the long-term health
    of children.
    Across our country, more than 15,000 children are diagnosed with
    pediatric cancer each year. Survival rates for most childhood cancers
    have improved in recent decades, but serious challenges remain. Children
    who survive cancer frequently struggle with significant complications
    later in life. For this reason, I signed into law the Childhood Cancer
    Survivorship, Treatment, Access, and Research Act of 2018, which

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    will provide more funding to research childhood cancers, explore
    effective treatments, and help enhance the quality of long-term care for
    children after active treatment and into remission.
    Every child, both born and unborn, possesses inherent dignity. Today,
    let us rededicate ourselves to our shared goal of building a better
    future for each one of them. As parents and role models, we have a moral
    responsibility to nurture and care for our most vulnerable population.
    Together, we can ensure that our children are healthy, and grow up to be
    happy and productive adults.
    The Congress, by a joint resolution approved May 18, 1928, as amended
    (36 U.S.C. 105), has called for the designation of the first Monday in
    October as Child Health Day and has requested that the President issue a
    proclamation in observance of this day.
    NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of
    America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and
    the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim Monday, October 1,
    2018, as Child Health Day. I call upon families, child health
    professionals, faith-based and community organizations, and governments
    to help ensure that America's children stay safe and healthy.
    IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-eighth day
    of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand eighteen, and of the
    Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-
    third.
    DONALD J. TRUMP