IV 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 583 

Expressing support for the designation of the last week in October as ‘‘Black 

Women’s Health Week’’. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 24, 2017 

Ms. CLARKE of New York submitted the following resolution; which was 

referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing support for the designation of the last week in 

October as ‘‘Black Women’s Health Week’’. 

Whereas Black women represent 7.4 percent of the United 

States population and 12.7 percent of the female population; 

Whereas, from 2007 to 2014, the teen pregnancy rate for 

Black teen women declined by 44 percent; 

Whereas Black teens have significantly lower prevalence of 

cigarette smoking than Hispanic and White adolescents; 

Whereas, from 2005 to 2014, new HIV cases among Black 

women declined by 42 percent; 

Whereas contraceptive use has increased among Black women 

over the past 10 years; 


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Whereas the Black Women’s Health Study found that over 

60 percent of their participants reported their mental 

health as ‘‘excellent’’ or ‘‘very good’’; 

Whereas Black women are twice as likely to be diagnosed 

with diabetes than their White counterparts; 

Whereas 56.6 percent of Black adult women are obese compared to 32.8 percent of White adult women, and overall 

Black Americans have the highest age-adjusted rate of 

obesity in the Nation; 

Whereas the obesity-related health care cost for preventable 

diseases was $23.9 billion in 2014 and is expected to be 

$50 billion by 2050; 

Whereas 46 percent of Black women over the age of 20 have 

hypertension compared to 31 percent of White women 

and 29 percent of Hispanic women; 

Whereas heart disease is one of the leading causes of death 

for women and Black women have an increased risk for 

heart disease due to the prevalence of diabetes, obesity, 

and hypertension; 

Whereas, while Black women have similar incidence rates of 

breast cancer as White women, they are 43 percent more 

likely to die from the disease than their White counterparts; 

Whereas it is estimated that over 30 percent of Black women 

do not receive the recommended number of prenatal visits 

because of costs; 

Whereas women who do not receive prenatal care are more 

likely to experience pregnancy-related complications; 


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Whereas the Black infant mortality rate is 2.4 times higher 

than for White infants, primarily because Black women 

have high rates of preterm births; 

Whereas Black women are 3 to 4 times more likely to die 

from pregnancy-related conditions, such as cardiovascular 

conditions, hemorrhage, and other chronic medical illnesses; 

Whereas discrimination is a key factor in chronic stress-related health disparities; 

Whereas stress related to discrimination contributes to adverse birth and maternal health outcomes, chronic diseases such as hypertension and diabetes, and mental 

health disorders; 

Whereas Black women are adversely affected by a lack of access to quality health care and continue to experience 

consistently higher rates of chronic illnesses, obesity, and 

premature mortality; 

Whereas most of the aforementioned health inequities could 

be resolved if not for the lack of clinical trials and limited 

research dollars that incorporate the lived experiences of 

Black women and are directed toward the improvement 

of the health of Black women; 

Whereas eliminating health disparities could save the economy billions of dollars annually by reducing medical expenditures for treating diseases and premature deaths, 

and recovering costs associated with work lost as a result 

of illness; 

Whereas, in 2015, 70.7 percent of working Black mothers are 

the primary or sole breadwinners for their families; 

Whereas Black women are overrepresented in the low-wage 

workforce and underrepresented in high-wage jobs; 


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Whereas more than 50 percent of Black women between the 

ages of 18 to 24 are pursuing higher education; 

Whereas only two percent of all physicians are Black women 

and 10 percent of enrollees in STEM graduate degree 

programs are Black women; 

Whereas Black women only represent 1.2 percent of executive 

or senior-level employees and 0.2 percent of CEOs at 

S&P 500 companies; 

Whereas when companies include more diversity in the Csuite, they are 35 percent more likely to have higher financial returns when compared with other companies in 

their industry; 

Whereas, even when Black women pursue higher education, 

they still earn less than their White male counterparts; 

Whereas Black women working full-time only earn 64 cents 

for every dollar earned by White men, which amounts to 

a loss of $21,001 per year and Black women having to 

work more than 19 months to make as much as White 

men did in the previous year; 

Whereas despite the immense improvement in their health, 

emotional well-being, and economic security, Black 

women are still at risk for poor health and economic outcomes, and should be a priority population in this Nation; 

Whereas, when Black women have the opportunity to be paid 

more and fairly, they can fully support their families, 

grow the economy, and invest in their health; and 

Whereas the last week in October would be an appropriate 

week to establish as ‘‘Black Women’s Health Week’’: 

Now, therefore, be it 


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1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives supports 

2 the designation of ‘‘Black Women’s Health Week’’. 

Æ 


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