Recognizing the essential contributions of frontline health workers to strengthening the United States national security and economic prosperity, sustaining and expanding progress on global health, and saving the lives of millions of women, men, and children around the world.

IV 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. RES. 467 Recognizing the essential contributions of frontline health workers to strength- ening the United States national security and economic prosperity, sus- taining and expanding progress on global health, and saving the lives of millions of women, men, and children around the world. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 27, 2019 Mrs. LOWEY (for herself and Mr. DIAZ-BALART) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs RESOLUTION Recognizing the essential contributions of frontline health workers to strengthening the United States national se- curity and economic prosperity, sustaining and expanding progress on global health, and saving the lives of millions of women, men, and children around the world. Whereas the estimated 140,000,000 people in 2017 affected by humanitarian crises, including conflicts and natural disasters, was 200 percent higher than 10 years prior; Whereas frontline health workers are a critical and cost-effec- tive component to building country resilience and the ca- pacity to save lives, foster inclusive economic growth, and prevent and respond to humanitarian crises and global health security threats from infectious diseases, including Ebola; VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:36 Jun 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR467.IH HR467 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HRES 467 IH Whereas frontline health workers include a range of occupa- tions, such as community health workers, midwives, nurses, pharmacists, doctors, and surgeons; Whereas the World Health Organization reports that the world will face a shortfall of 18,000,000 health workers by 2030 without immediate and concerted action, par- ticularly in low- and middle-income countries, many of which are in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia, and these are regions that have the greatest share of the global disease burden and the highest number of preventable deaths, and from which many emerging and reemerging global health threats originate; Whereas nations with healthy populations are more likely to be productive, prosperous, and peaceful, while countries with poorer health are more prone to instability, conflict, and extremism; Whereas the United Nations Secretary-General’s High-Level Commission on Health Employment and Economic Growth found that health employment is a force-multi- plier for inclusive economic growth and that health in- vestments provide a nine-fold economic return; Whereas frontline health workers are particularly crucial dur- ing natural or complex emergency situations to saving lives and aiding communities to recover, rebuild, and be- come more resilient; Whereas health workers provide lifesaving care at great per- sonal risk in conflict settings; Whereas, in 2018, at least 167 health workers were killed and 710 injured in attacks, which occurred in at least 23 countries in conflict and impeded access to essential VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:36 Jun 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR467.IH HR467 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HRES 467 IH health services for millions while exacerbating refugee cri- ses; Whereas United States leadership and investment has led to dramatic successes in global health, including the reduc- tion of child mortality by 58 percent and of maternal mortality by 44 percent from 1990 to 2017, the reduc- tion of new HIV infections by 36 percent from 2000 to 2017, and the decrease in malaria mortality by 62 per- cent from 2000 to 2015, and this progress has contrib- uted to corresponding productivity and economic growth; Whereas access to a well-trained, well-equipped, and well-sup- ported frontline health workforce is critical to the efficacy and sustainability of United States global health pro- grams; Whereas frontline health workers are the first, and often only, link to health services for millions of people living in low- and middle-income countries and provide services where they are most needed, especially in remote and rural areas; Whereas frontline health workers too often work without the resources and equipment they need to adequately protect themselves and their patients, including personal protec- tive equipment, clean water, decent toilets, and handwashing facilities with soap; Whereas partnerships with faith-based organizations, human- itarian nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector in adequately training, equipping, compensating, protecting, and supporting frontline health workers help countries achieve progress toward global health goals; Whereas despite the key role of frontline health workers in improving health, advancing peace and security, and VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:36 Jun 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR467.IH HR467 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HRES 467 IH spurring economic growth, the World Bank and the World Health Organization estimate that at least half the world’s population lacks access to essential health serv- ices; Whereas the Commission on Health Employment and Eco- nomic Growth found that increased health workforce em- ployment is critical to saving lives, spurring inclusive eco- nomic growth, and promoting women’s empowerment, as women comprise at least 70 percent of employment in the health and social sectors, compared with about 40 per- cent across all sectors; Whereas every day, more than 14,000 children die worldwide, mostly from preventable causes, and 830 women die due to pregnancy or childbirth-related complications; Whereas every year, millions of people succumb to the rav- ages of AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and other treatable and often preventable chronic conditions; and Whereas successful implementation of the United States glob- al health contributions and improved health and socio- economic outcomes for those served by these programs requires integrated, flexible, and cross-sectoral program- ming: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 1 (1) reaffirms the central role of local frontline 2 health workforce teams in achieving the objectives of 3 global health programs administered by the Depart- 4 ment of State, the United States Agency for Inter- 5 national Development, the Department of Health 6 and Human Services, including the Centers for Dis- 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:36 Jun 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR467.IH HR467 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HRES 467 IH ease Control and Prevention, the Department of De- 1 fense, and other relevant agencies, as well as multi- 2 lateral institutions supported by the United States; 3 (2) acknowledges that in the aftermath of nat- 4 ural disasters, disease outbreaks, and conflict, front- 5 line health workers perform critical services under 6 difficult working conditions, often at great personal 7 risk, to save the lives of those without access to 8 medicines, equipment, or safe water and sanitation 9 in many cases; 10 (3) urges greater global attention and support 11 for local frontline health workers to ensure their pro- 12 tection and ability to respond effectively during hu- 13 manitarian and public health crises, including pro- 14 tection of frontline health workers and populations 15 in conflict-affected states from deliberate and indis- 16 criminate attacks and targeting; 17 (4) calls on all relevant Federal agencies to uti- 18 lize existing flexibilities to implement integrated and 19 cross-sectoral programming across global health ac- 20 counts to strengthen local frontline health workforce 21 teams and the systems supporting them with con- 22 crete targets and clear accountability mechanisms to 23 support delivery of resilient and sustainable access 24 to essential health services; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:36 Jun 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR467.IH HR467 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HRES 467 IH (5) encourages all relevant Federal agencies to 1 facilitate collaborative learning between domestic 2 and global frontline health workforce-strengthening 3 programs to improve effectiveness and health out- 4 comes, and to prioritize the mobilization of addi- 5 tional private and public resources to ensure that 6 frontline health workers are able to address the most 7 acute issues to advance sustainable global health 8 progress. 9 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:36 Jun 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HR467.IH HR467 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS