This resolution supports the designation of National African Immigrant and Refugee HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis Awareness (NAIRHHA) Day. The resolution also recognizes the importance of dedicating more attention and resources to addressing HIV/AIDS and viral hepatitis in African immigrant and refugee communities across the United States.
[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 693 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 693
Expressing support for the designation of September 9 as ``National
African Immigrant and Refugee HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis Awareness
(NAIRHHA) Day''.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
September 18, 2023
Mr. Johnson of Georgia (for himself, Ms. Velazquez, Ms. Lee of
California, Ms. Adams, Ms. Sewell, Ms. Clarke of New York, Ms. Wilson
of Florida, Mrs. Cherfilus-McCormick, Ms. Crockett, Ms. Pressley, Mr.
Green of Texas, Ms. Jackson Lee, Mr. Jackson of Illinois, and Ms.
Williams of Georgia) submitted the following resolution; which was
referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Expressing support for the designation of September 9 as ``National
African Immigrant and Refugee HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis Awareness
(NAIRHHA) Day''.
Whereas the number of African immigrants and refugees living in the United
States has increased by 500 percent between 1980 and 2016, and these
communities are expected to continue growing at a high rate: United
States census data have shown that the population of African immigrants
has grown by 71 percent from 2001 to 2016 alone;
Whereas HIV infection rates are 6 times higher in the African immigrant
population than in the general United States population, and are nearly
twice those of United States-born Black individuals;
Whereas African immigrants face the highest average chronic hepatitis B rates in
the country, with approximately 10 percent of these communities living
with hepatitis B;
Whereas HIV and hepatitis B and C are preventable and treatable conditions, and
with appropriate attention and focus, health outcomes among African
immigrant communities can be improved and lives can be saved;
Whereas the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that
individuals born in Africa, or individuals born in the United States who
have at least one parent born in Africa, who were not vaccinated at
birth, should be prioritized for hepatitis B testing;
Whereas African immigrant communities face significant challenges to HIV and
viral hepatitis testing, care, and treatment, and though they have high
rates of infection, they have low rates of diagnosis and care;
Whereas challenges to HIV and viral hepatitis testing, care, and treatment
include stigma, fear, lack of awareness and knowledge, language
barriers, traditional values and social norms, and limited access to
health care services, and there also exists a need for providers and
services to be culturally and linguistically appropriate to better meet
the needs of African immigrants, in keeping with the National Standards
for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) in Health
and Health Care, which describe a framework to deliver services that are
culturally and linguistically appropriate and respectful, and that
respond to patients' cultural health beliefs, preferences, and
communication needs;
Whereas immigration status is also associated with fear of health facilities,
low acculturation and unfamiliarity navigating complex health care
systems, social and economic marginalization, fear of deportation, and a
lower rate of health insurance, all posing considerable barriers to the
health of African immigrants and refugees living in the United States;
Whereas NAIRHHA Day is a day aimed toward bringing local and national attention
to the health issues of HIV/AIDS and viral hepatitis in African
immigrant and refugee populations in the United States, in a way that is
culturally and linguistically appropriate, and by addressing some of the
unique issues that African immigrants in the United States face through
awareness, education, and resources, NAIRHHA Day will help empower
communities to take charge of their own health;
Whereas the objectives of NAIRHHA Day include raising awareness and eliminating
stigma; education about protection against HIV, viral hepatitis, and
other related diseases; placing control back within the community by
encouraging screenings and treatment, as well as hepatitis B
vaccination; and advocating for policies and practices that promote
healthy African immigrant communities, families, and individuals;
Whereas no existing HIV/AIDS awareness day addresses the distinct factors
influencing the high rates of HIV and viral hepatitis in African
immigrants and refugees, groups which are often overlooked or
misclassified as ``Black'' or ``African American'' in HIV surveillance
programs, due to not collecting or reporting on information about
country of origin;
Whereas with the rapid population rise of African immigrants in the United
States, it is critical to raise awareness among health care and social
service providers and among African immigrant and refugee communities
about the risk of viral hepatitis and HIV/AIDS, their potential
consequences, and opportunities for prevention, diagnosis, and
treatment, and as African immigrants become long-term United States
residents, it will be increasingly important to provide screening,
prevention, and treatment of chronic and infectious diseases with a
culturally sensitive approach;
Whereas building capacity within communities to promote knowledge, treatment,
and prevention of HIV and viral hepatitis contributes greatly to the
sustainability of the NAIRHHA Day initiative, for, as communities
increase their capacity to respond to the ``silent epidemics'' of HIV
and viral hepatitis, they will develop their own resources to continue
this work; and
Whereas by encouraging more people to get tested and seek treatment, NAIRHHA Day
is aiding those who suffer now and preventing others from contracting
these transmissible diseases, and by trying to lessen, if not remove,
the stigma behind HIV/AIDS and viral hepatitis, NAIRHHA Day is
facilitating community building and communication: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) supports the designation of ``National African
Immigrant and Refugee HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis Awareness
(NAIRHHA) Day'';
(2) recognizes the importance of dedicating more attention
and resources to addressing HIV/AIDS and viral hepatitis in
African immigrant and refugee communities across the United
States; and
(3) encourages a commitment to reducing new viral hepatitis
and HIV infections and hepatitis B and C- and HIV-related
deaths through more robust screening, vaccination, and linkage
to treatment and care in African immigrant and refugee
communities.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
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