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[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 173 Introduced in House (IH)]

110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 173

   Supporting the goals and ideals of the First Summit of Caribbean 
                          Ministers of Health.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 21, 2007

  Mrs. Jones of Ohio (for herself and Mrs. Christensen) submitted the 
following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
                            Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

 
   Supporting the goals and ideals of the First Summit of Caribbean 
                          Ministers of Health.

Whereas Congress passed by voice vote, a resolution affirming the recognition of 
        Caribbean American Heritage during the month of June;
Whereas The United States Department of State is hosting the Caribbean 20/20 
        conference on issues of the Caribbean-United States relationship;
Whereas the Heads of Government of the 15 permanent Members of the Caribbean 
        Community are gathered in Washington, DC;
Whereas on June 8, members of the Caribbean American Community commemorated 
        Caribbean American HIV/AIDS Awareness at the United States Capitol;
Whereas healthcare and the access to healthcare in less developed nations has 
        become subject to negotiations and agreement which heretofore have had 
        clear and distinguishable boundaries outside of the health care arena;
Whereas those agreements now impact the ability of a nation to provide services, 
        personnel, and products to their community;
Whereas the health of a nation is intricately linked and most naturally 
        determines the economic well being of a nation;
Whereas the international community has joined efforts by the coordination of 
        various international agencies to combat the major illness and diseases 
        in the developing world;
Whereas the link between the research, treatment, and prevention of disease 
        between the United States and our hemispheric neighbors is a critical 
        link in the international war against treatable and curable disease;
Whereas the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the Caribbean, as throughout the world has had 
        a devastating impact on the economy, the family structure, and the 
        population at large and the joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS 
        (UNAIDS) has cited the region the second most affected in the world;
Whereas research has proven that one main barrier to early detection of cancers 
        among Caribbean residents is an admitted lack of participation in public 
        awareness programs;
Whereas today, countries of the Caribbean are undergoing a demographic 
        transition where both men and women live longer than in the past, with 
        women living an average of 4 to 6 years longer than men;
Whereas education is inextricably linked to health conditions and literacy rates 
        require healthy minds and bodies to develop;
Whereas poverty and economic factors play a major role in determining health 
        status as well as general levels of income and expenditure;
Whereas overall, chronic noncommunicable diseases are the leading cause of 
        death, with heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer, and injuries are 
        top causes of death in the Caribbean region;
Whereas while childhood infections have decreases as a cause of death, 
        nutritional deficiencies have increased and in early adulthood, 
        diabetes, suicide, and homicide have increased as causes of death in the 
        past 15 years;
Whereas the nations of the Caribbean have demonstrated a commitment in both time 
        and resources to the improvement of health care delivery, access, and 
        treatment of its citizens through their membership and participation in 
        and partnership with other nations and international institutions; and
Whereas the United States Library of Congress will play host to the first and 
        most historic meeting of the Ministers of Health from the Caribbean 
        Community (CARICOM) group to discuss the health of the region and plans 
        to use the resources of the region as well as its public/private 
        partnerships designed to improve the health and welfare of their 
        nations: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),  
That the Congress--
            (1) supports the goals and ideals of the First Summit of 
        Caribbean Ministers of Health;
            (2) encourages all international agencies, nongovernmental 
        agencies, private voluntary organizations, governments, 
        individuals both here in the United States and globally to 
        recognize this historic event; and
            (3) encourages the continued coordination of the nations of 
        the region to combat health crises as a region.
                                 <all>
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