I 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 3793

Concerning participation of Taiwan in the World Health Organization. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 10, 2004

Mr. BROWN of Ohio (for himself, Mr. CHABOT, Mr. ROHRABACHER, and Mr. 

WEXLER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations 

A BILL

Concerning participation of Taiwan in the World Health 

Organization.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. CONCERNING THE PARTICIPATION OF TAIWAN 

4 IN THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION 

5 (WHO). 

6 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress makes the following 

7 findings: 

8 (1) Good health is important to every citizen of 

9 the world and access to the highest standards of 
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1 health information and services is necessary to im2 prove the public health. 

3 (2) Direct and unobstructed participation in 

4 international health cooperation forums and pro5 grams is beneficial for all parts of the world, espe6 cially with today’s greater potential for the cross7 border spread of various infectious diseases such as 

8 the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), tuber9 culosis, and malaria. 

10 (3) Taiwan’s population of 23,500,000 people is 

11 greater than that of three-fourths of the member 

12 states already in the World Health Organization 

13 (WHO). 

14 (4) Taiwan’s achievements in the field of health 

15 are substantial, including one of the highest life ex16 pectancy levels in Asia, maternal and infant mor17 tality rates comparable to those of western countries, 

18 the eradication of such infectious diseases as chol19 era, smallpox, and the plague, and the first to eradi20 cate polio and provide children with hepatitis B vac21 cinations. 

22 (5) The United States Centers for Disease Con23 trol and Prevention and its Taiwan counterpart 

24 agencies have enjoyed close collaboration on a wide 

25 range of public health issues. 
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1 (6) In recent years Taiwan has expressed a will2 ingness to assist financially and technically in inter3 national aid and health activities supported by the 

4 WHO. 

5 (7) On January 14, 2001, an earthquake, reg6 istering between 7.6 and 7.9 on the Richter scale, 

7 struck El Salvador. In response, the Taiwanese Gov8 ernment sent 2 rescue teams, consisting of 90 indi9 viduals specializing in firefighting, medicine, and 

10 civil engineering. The Taiwanese Ministry of Foreign 

11 Affairs also donated $200,000 in relief aid to the 

12 Salvadoran Government. 

13 (8) The World Health Assembly has allowed ob14 servers to participate in the activities of the organi15 zation, including the Palestine Liberation Organiza16 tion in 1974, the Order of Malta, and the Holy See 

17 in the early 1950s. 

18 (9) The United States, in the 1994 Taiwan Pol19 icy Review, declared its intention to support Tai20 wan’s participation in appropriate international or21 ganizations. 

22 (10) Public Law 106–137 required the Sec23 retary of State to submit a report to the Congress 

24 on efforts by the executive branch to support Tai-
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1 wan’s participation in international organizations, in 

2 particular the WHO. 

3 (11) In light of all benefits that Taiwan’s par4 ticipation in the WHO can bring to the state of 

5 health not only in Taiwan, but also regionally and 

6 globally, Taiwan and its 23,500,000 people should 

7 have appropriate and meaningful participation in the 

8 WHO. 

9 (12) On May 11, 2001, President Bush stated 

10 in his letter to Senator Murkowski that the United 

11 States ‘‘should find opportunities for Taiwan’s voice 

12 to be heard in international organizations in order to 

13 make a contribution, even if membership is not pos14 sible’’, further stating that his Administration ‘‘has 

15 focused on finding concrete ways for Taiwan to ben16 efit and contribute to the WHO’’. 

17 (13) In his speech made in the World Medical 

18 Association on May 14, 2002, Secretary of Health 

19 and Human Services Tommy Thompson announced 

20 ‘‘America’s work for a healthy world cuts across po21 litical lines. That is why my government supports 

22 Taiwan’s efforts to gain observership status at the 

23 World Health Assembly. We know this is a con24 troversial issue, but we do not shrink from taking a 

25 public stance on it. The people of Taiwan deserve 
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1 the same level of public health as citizens of every 

2 nation on earth, and we support them in their ef3 forts to achieve it’’. 

4 (14) The Government of the Republic of China 

5 on Taiwan, in response to an appeal from the 

6 United Nations and the United States for resources 

7 to control the spread of HIV/AIDS, donated 

8 $1,000,000 to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tu9 berculosis and Malaria in December 2002. 

10 (15) In 2003, the outbreak of Severe Acute 

11 Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) caused 73 deaths in 

12 Taiwan. 

13 (16) Avian influenza, commonly known as bird 

14 flu, has reemerged in Asia as some strain of the in15 fluenza has been reported by Cambodia, China, In16 donesia, Japan, Laos, Pakistan, South Korea, Tai17 wan, Thailand, and Vietnam. 

18 (17) The SARS and avian influenza outbreaks 

19 illustrate that disease knows no boundaries and em20 phasize the importance of allowing all people access 

21 to the WHO. 

22 (18) As the pace of globalization quickens and 

23 the spread of infectious disease accelerates, it is crit24 ical that all people, including the people of Taiwan, 
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1 be given the opportunity to participate in inter2 national health organizations such as the WHO. 

3 (19) Secretary of Health and Human Services 

4 Tommy Thompson acknowledged during the 2003 

5 World Health Assembly meeting that ‘‘[t]he need for 

6 effective public health exists among all peoples’’. 

7 (b) PLAN.—The Secretary of State is authorized—

8 (1) to initiate a United States plan to endorse 

9 and obtain observer status for Taiwan at the annual 

10 week-long summit of the World Health Assembly in 

11 May 2004 in Geneva, Switzerland; 

12 (2) to instruct the United States delegation to 

13 Geneva to implement that plan; and 

14 (3) to introduce a resolution in support of ob15 server status for Taiwan at the summit of the World 

16 Health Assembly. 

17 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 14 days after the date 

18 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall 

19 submit a report to Congress in unclassified form describ20 ing the action taken under subsection (b).

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