Real health insurance comes from the diet and eating that which was unclean to eating that which is clean. That which is sanitary is that which is clean and that which is unsanitary is that which is unclean. What is the relationship between sanity and sanitarium, insanity and unsanitary? When you put that into the principle of justice, the more deprived of justice human beings are, the more insane or unclean they become. When you can live in filth then you encourage rats, cockroaches, flies and all things that are carriers of disease. So, one of the first things that the Honorable Elijah Muhammad enforced upon us was cleanliness and he said one day that he would like to form a committee of cleanliness to enforce cleanliness in the society. He said cleanliness is not next to Godliness; it is Godliness. So, just helping our people to see the need for, and to get involved in the practice of being clean, will start them on the road to health and sanitary conditions

Health is central to a high quality of life. Good health requires both preventive measures and curative programs. Central to preventive measures is healthy food and healthy eating. Health is not simply the absence of disease, health is defined as a human right.

At the federal level, managed care, social security and Medicare/Medicaid programs are in financial stress. Since medicine is big business and big government, the curative medicine programs contain all of the characteristics that challenge our survival, including racism and economic discrimination.

We must change our eating habits. Next, we must reduce the amount of junk food consumed by our children. Cigarette smoking is suicidal, the use of controlled substances also results in illness and death. Poor health contributes to lost income and unemployment.

We must address political issues involving health care with the same critical eye, the same energy and the same demand for equity that we reserve for the most important challenges to our survival.

The three leading causes of death among Black people are heart disease, cancer and respiratory illness. Heart disease is the number one cause of death in the United States. In 1992, the death rate from heart disease for Black males was 45.8% higher than for White males. For Black females it was 69.2% higher. Also in 1992, death rates from strokes were two times higher for Blacks than for Whites.

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of death among women in the United States. Cervical cancer is also a serious problem. Black women are more likely to die from this disease than White women. Black men are twice as likely to die from prostate cancer than White men.

Increase the level of awareness about risk factors related to heart disease and stroke by collaborating with local community groups to develop a health component that will develop and implement educational activities tailored to meet the needs of the community.

The net disinvestments and down-sizing of health care infrastructure increases the gap in health care outcomes. Black, Latino American and other Americans need more, not less, investment to produce more doctors, nurses and dentists. There is also a need for more medical schools, hospitals, and clinics.

Background

African Americans and other minorities disproportionately suffer from preventable and treatable diseases. For example, African American men die from strokes at almost twice the rate of other men, and have a higher incidence of prostate cancer than any other group.

While the overall death rate due to breast cancer has declined, it has increased for African American women. In addition, African American infants are twice as likely as White babies to die before their first birthday. Diabetes also is more common among African Americans than Whites, with the highest rate among African American women.

The lack of access to preventive care and inadequate treatment when care is provided account for the disparate impact on minorities’ health. Indeed, almost 31 percent of minority adults do not have any health insurance, compared to 14 percent of White adults. Minorities are twice as likely to have very little or no choice in where they obtain health care. They are also less likely to be satisfied with the quality of their care when they are fortunate enough to receive it.

Latino Americans are a medically underserved population. In 1997, Latino Americans constituted 34.2 percent of the total uninsured population —or approximately 14.3 million people. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus will support and monitor the administration’s initiative to provide access to health care to uninsured workers.

HIV/AIDS

Few can claim that they have not been touched personally by HIV/AIDS. Yet, the subject of HIV/AIDS is still taboo in many of our communities.

Employment

The issue of employment policy can be viewed in different ways. On one hand, a decent working wage must be supported so that families can survive with one working wage earner. Many families must have available to them, the option of allowing a homemaker who cares for their children as a full-time job. To that end, there must be a public policy that supports this family organization.

On the other hand, we must use discipline and our individual will to make rational choices that allow us to avoid future choices or circumstances that force dependence. We must develop a moral code that realistically helps our young people choose to not have babies as teenagers and to curb behavior that will require them to grow up too fast.

We must choose to parent our young so they stay in school and thereby allow more of them to become eligible for higher paying positions.

Latino Americans remain the most under represented group in the federal workforce, particularly in high-level positions. Currently, Latinos represent only 6% of the federal workforce, or 4.5 points below the civilian workforce of 10.5 percent. This is more than any other major group. More disturbing is the fact that Latino American federal employment is concentrated in the lower pay levels. Nearly 79% of Latino Americans are employed in the GS-5 to GS-12 positions, while only 2.4% of the career-SES positions are held by Latino Americans.

In addition, Latino Americans are under represented in 16 of the 17 executive departments and 22 or the 23 independent agencies. Most troubling is that departments and agencies with the worst record of Latino American-employment provide services critically important to Latino Americans, including: Commerce (2.6%), HHS (2.9%), Education (3.5%), and State (3.9%). The CHC will continue to follow the progress of how various departments and agencies are implementing OPM’s 10-point plan to improve the recruitment of Latino Americans in the federal workforce.

Housing

Housing is a fundamental human right. Homelessness in the wealthiest society in the world is affront to humanity. Family life is to a large measure conditional of the quality of the family’s housing.

Public policy makers too often provide legislation remedies on housing that are out of reach for families who have historically been denied equal access to housing opportunities.

The issue of homelessness is a growing social and spiritual crisis in America. In too many cities across the nation entire families live homeless on the streets.

Today, between two and three million people live on the streets of America. Of that number, almost 40% are children, 24% are families and 24% are psychiatrically disabled. For those poor families who have some form of shelter, over 5 million use more than 50 percent of their income for rent or live in substandard housing. Only 25% of eligible low-income renters traditionally have received federal assistance.

Over the past few years, Congress has consistently cut the budget for housing programs for poor and low-income families. The Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) budget has declined from $26 billion to $16 billion during the 1990s. In the past two years, Congress has slashed programs for the homeless and funds to repair and upgrade public housing. Funds to build new public housing have been eliminated.

Welfare Reform

Welfare reform legislation was recently signed which presents a significant challenge to Black American, Latino American and other people, even a significant number of poor Whites. In defense of his actions, President Clinton has stated his intention to offer new legislation in Congress to correct those provisions of the law that were opposed by a broad coalition of groups who rose in defense of the poor. Since any change in the law is uncertain and dependent on the constantly changing articulations of the president’s best interest, congressional make-up and temporary interest group coalitions, some attention must be given to the impact of compliance with the law as it now exists.

Jobs, job-training, effective public schools, enforcement of laws against racial bias, universal availability of direct and indirect job-related information, effective affordable transportation are all necessary to any effort to prevent the expected chaos from the welfare reform law. Inefficient institutions are partly responsible for the failure of welfare to serve its traditional charitable purpose. Now that the "safety net" has been removed, we will have to reinforce the ladder and the structure so that people don’t fall off and therefore need a safety net to prevent the trauma and pain of hitting the concrete ground of reality toward which we all may fall.

Getting the poor matched with jobs is certainly a worthwhile goal but this goal cannot be achieved without creating other institutions that work. Most jobs are being created away from the neighborhoods where most poor people live.

Transportation must be made available. Many of the jobs are on night shifts, a time when public transit is unavailable and employees offer no transportation or subsidy. Many jobs are subject to the political-social structure of certain ethnic groups and only members and friends of the group have ready access to the job listings. Schools cannot continue to produce students who are unable to complete reasonable tasks associated with entry-level jobs.

In the global marketplace, many jobs are being filled while the entire planet is being looked at as a labor pool. This context allows transnational and less global-minded companies to shop and bid on an expanding number of tasks.

The least amount of conflict comes from a proper balance of the needs of all interest groups. To date, the poor have been discounted as insignificant. But, at the same time, oppressed groups have failed to take responsible action to force traditional institutions to function effectively. Parents must teach, schools must educate and the buses must run on time. Thus, welfare reform legislation must ensure a viable safety net to refortify families.

In the zeal to "reform" welfare at any cost, many politicians have ignored the realities of poverty facing our children and families. To think that states will be able to adequately feed, shelter, and provide health care for the poor with less money is wishful thinking at best.

Fourteen million children currently live in poverty. The Urban Institute estimates that the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996–will move 2.6 million more people, including 1.1 million children, into poverty. Under the new law, 11 million families, including 8 million with children, will lose income–an average of $1,300 each year.

While most agreed that welfare needed to be reformed, many did not believe that it should be repealed. Yet, the key provisions of the new law essentially repeals safety net programs for the poor. The Act: (i) requires recipients to work after two years regardless of whether or not there are jobs; (ii) imposes a 5-year time limit on benefits; (ii) replaces AID to Families with Dependent Children with capped block grants; (iv) makes dramatic cuts in the food stamp program; and (v) makes certain legal immigrants ineligible for SSI and food stamps.

While the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) successfully fought to provide health care for many poor children, the impact of the other provisions of the act are still devastating for poor people.