III 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 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. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 24, 2018 

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 

RESOLUTION 

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. 

Whereas the origin of National Minority Health Month is National Negro Health Week, established in 1915 by Dr. 

Booker T. Washington; 


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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 nonHispanic 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 nonHispanic White men; 

Whereas the HIV diagnosis rate among Hispanic women is 

more than 4 times the HIV diagnosis rate among nonHispanic White women; 


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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 nonHispanic 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; 


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Whereas Asian Americans are 2 times more likely than nonHispanic 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; 


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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 

1 Resolved, That the Senate supports the goals and 

2 ideals of National Minority Health Month in April 2018, 

3 which include bringing attention to the health disparities 

4 faced by minority populations in the United States, such 

5 as American Indians, Alaskan Natives, Asian Americans, 


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1 African Americans, Hispanics, and Native Hawaiians or 

2 other Pacific Islanders. 

Æ 


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