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[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1381 Introduced in House (IH)]

110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1381

  Expressing the sense of the House that there should be an increased 
 Federal commitment prioritizing prevention and public health for all 
                      people in the United States.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 29, 2008

Ms. Roybal-Allard (for herself, Mr. McGovern, Ms. Granger, Mr. Moran of 
    Virginia, Ms. DeGette, and Mr. Castle) submitted the following 
 resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
  Expressing the sense of the House that there should be an increased 
 Federal commitment prioritizing prevention and public health for all 
                      people in the United States.

Whereas the United States has the highest rate of preventable deaths among 19 
        industrialized U.N. nations and lags behind 28 other U.N. nations in 
        life expectancy;
Whereas various research studies suggest that nearly 60 percent of premature 
        deaths in the United States are attributable to environmental 
        conditions, social circumstances, and behavioral choices that could be 
        addressed through prevention;
Whereas of the more than $2,200,000,000,000 in health care spent nationally in 
        the United States every year, more than any other nation in the world, 
        less than 4 cents out of every dollar is spent on prevention and public 
        health;
Whereas chronic diseases are the leading causes of preventable death and 
        disability in the United States, accounting for 7 out of every 10 deaths 
        and killing more than 1,700,000 people in the United States every year;
Whereas these often preventable chronic diseases account for 75 percent of 
        health care spending in the United States, including more than 96 cents 
        out of every dollar spent in Medicare and more than 83 cents out of 
        every dollar spent in Medicaid;
Whereas these chronic diseases cost the United States an additional 
        $1,000,000,000,000 each year in lost productivity, and are a major 
        contributing factor to the overall poor health that is placing the 
        Nation's economic security and competitiveness in jeopardy;
Whereas the number of people with chronic conditions is rapidly increasing, and 
        it is estimated that if we do not intervene now that by 2025 nearly half 
        of the population will suffer from at least one chronic disease;
Whereas current research has shown that increasing to 90 percent the use of just 
        5 preventive services, including--

    (1) the portion of adults who take aspirin daily to prevent heart 
disease;

    (2) the portion of smokers who are advised by a health professional to 
quit and are offered medication or other assistance;

    (3) the portion of adults age 50 and older who are up to date with any 
recommended screening for colorectal cancer;

    (4) the portion of adults age 50 and older immunized against flu 
annually; and

    (5) the portion of women age 40 and older who have been screened for 
breast cancer in the past 2 years, would save more than 100,000 lives each 
year in the United States; and

Whereas research has shown that investing in community-level interventions that 
        promote and enable proper nutrition, increased access to physical 
        activity, and smoking cessation programs can prevent and mitigate 
        chronic diseases, improve quality of life, increase economic 
        productivity, and reduce health care costs: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes that in order to reduce the disease burden 
        and health care costs associated with preventable disease and 
        injury, it is imperative that this Nation strengthen its public 
        health system to--
                    (A) provide all persons in the United States with 
                the information, resources, and environment they need 
                to make healthier choices and live healthier lives; and
                    (B) protect all people in this country from health 
                threats beyond their control, such as bioterrorism, 
                natural disasters, infectious disease outbreaks, and 
                environmental hazards;
            (2) commits to creating public health strategies to 
        eliminate health disparities and improve the health of all 
        people in the United States, regardless of race, ethnicity, or 
        socioeconomic status;
            (3) supports the prioritizing of public policies focusing 
        on the prevention of disease and injury, and calls for 
        community-based programs to support healthy lifestyles, 
        including those that promote proper nutrition and increased 
        access to physical activity;
            (4) urges the expansion of the 5 prevention strategies of 
        daily aspirin therapy, smoking cessation, colorectal cancer 
        screening, annual flu immunizations, and breast cancer 
        screening that can save more than 100,000 lives each year;
            (5) believes that the congressional budget process should 
        reflect the significant savings associated with investments in 
        prevention of disease and injury, and therefore strongly 
        encourages the Congressional Budget Office to consider the 
        health care savings associated with reduced chronic disease 
        burden due to clinical and community preventive services and 
        programs when formulating its health care cost estimates; and
            (6) pledges to helping the United States be the healthiest 
        nation by supporting an increased investment in Federal public 
        health programs to at least 1 percent of total Federal spending 
        within 5 years of the passage of this resolution.
                                 <all>
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