[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2899 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 2899
To amend the Public Health Service Act to include Middle Easterners and
North Africans in the statutory definition of a ``racial and ethnic
minority group'', and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
September 21, 2023
Mr. Padilla introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Public Health Service Act to include Middle Easterners and
North Africans in the statutory definition of a ``racial and ethnic
minority group'', and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Health Equity and Middle Eastern and
North African Community Inclusion Act of 2023'' or the ``Health Equity
and MENA Community Inclusion Act of 2023''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITION.
In this Act, the terms ``Middle Eastern and North African'' or
``MENA'', with respect to individuals or populations, includes
individuals and populations who identify with or belong to one or more
nationalities or ethnic groups originating in a country (or portion
thereof) in the Middle Eastern and North African region (such as
Lebanese, Iranians, Egyptians, Moroccans, Yemenis, Chaldeans,
Imazighen, Kurds, Palestinians, and Yazidis).
SEC. 3. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Through the establishment of the Office of Minority
Health (referred to in this section as the ``OMH'') in 1986,
the Department of Health and Human Services has developed
health policies and programs that eliminate health disparities
and improve the health of racial and ethnic minority
populations.
(2) Congress has funded the OMH to assure improved health
status of racial and ethnic minorities, and to develop measures
to evaluate the effectiveness of activities aimed at reducing
health disparities and supporting the local community. The
activities of the OMH have addressed health disparities,
including with respect to physical activity and nutrition,
clinical conditions, individual social needs, and the social
determinants of health for ``racial and ethnic minority
groups''.
(3) Before the amendments made by this Act, section
1707(g)(1) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300u-
6(g)(1)) defined the term ``racial and ethnic minority group''
(for whom the OMH works to improve health outcomes and
eliminate health disparities) to exclude Middle Easterners and
North Africans, and thereby prevented MENA populations from
accessing critical resources intended to assist historically
marginalized communities.
(4) Independent researchers and private sector research
initiatives have found significant health disparities between
MENA individuals and the non-Hispanic White population, as well
as significant overlap between the health outcomes and health
conditions of MENA individuals and those of other racial and
ethnic minority groups.
(5) Poor health outcomes are often connected to
impoverishment in other aspects of life and are exacerbated by
additional barriers to access high-quality health coverage,
whether in terms of language, eligibility, health literacy, or
discrimination at the point-of-service.
(6) A recent study published in the journal, Proceedings of
the National Academy of Sciences, suggested that MENA
individuals are not perceived as White and do not perceive
themselves as White.
(7) Research on the health outcomes and health conditions
of MENA individuals is troubling and suggests that efforts must
be made on the Federal level to disaggregate the demographic
data of MENA individuals from the demographic data of
individuals in the non-Hispanic White category and fully
understand the social determinants of health for health
disparities and outcomes experienced by MENA individuals.
(8) Under the current Federal standards for data on race
and ethnicity, demographic data on MENA individuals is
aggregated into the same category as demographic data on
individuals of European ancestry, which limits the ability of
the Federal Government to understand the factors that
contribute to health outcomes for MENA individuals.
(9) The Federal standards for data on race and ethnicity
effectively obscure the reality of minority health and health
disparities by aggregating demographic health data on MENA
individuals with that of Europeans.
(10) MENA individuals are not included among the groups for
whom the OMH works to improve health outcomes and eliminate
health disparities, which further limits the opportunity of
MENA individuals to access programs designed to address their
experiences and health conditions.
(11) The OMH could better assess and eliminate health
disparities by conducting a comprehensive study of the health
of MENA individuals and recognizing MENA individuals as a
racial and ethnic minority group.
SEC. 4. INCLUSION OF MIDDLE EASTERNERS AND NORTH AFRICANS IN DEFINITION
OF RACIAL AND ETHNIC MINORITY GROUPS.
(a) In General.--Section 1707(g)(1) of the Public Health Service
Act (42 U.S.C. 300u-6(g)(1)) is amended by striking ``Blacks; and
Hispanics'' and inserting ``Blacks or African Americans; Hispanics; and
Middle Easterners and North Africans''.
(b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that subsection
(a) should be implemented so as to ensure that--
(1) the definition of a ``racial and ethnic minority
group'' in section 1707(g)(1) of the Public Health Service Act
(42 U.S.C. 300u-6(g)(1)), as amended by subsection (a), is
applied in the implementation and execution of Federal programs
and activities that reference such definition; and
(2) no racial and ethnic minority group served by such
programs and activities is negatively impacted by the amendment
made by subsection (a).
(c) Undefined References.--Not later than 2 years after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services
shall--
(1) identify all regulations, guidance, orders, and
documents of the Department of Health and Human Services for
establishment or implementation of a health care or public
health program, activity, or survey that--
(A) use the term ``racial and ethnic minority
group'' or similar terminology; and
(B) do not define such term or terminology; and
(2) take such actions as may be necessary to clarify
whether the definition of ``racial and ethnic minority group''
in section 1707(g)(1) of the Public Health Service Act (42
U.S.C. 300u-6(g)(1)), as amended by subsection (a), applies to
such term or terminology.
(d) Report to Congress.--Not later than 2 years after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall
submit a report to Congress on the implementation of this section.
SEC. 5. REPORT ON THE HEALTH OF THE MIDDLE EASTERN AND NORTH AFRICAN
POPULATION.
(a) Study Required.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services
(referred to in this section as the ``Secretary'') shall conduct or
support a comprehensive study regarding the unique health patterns and
outcomes of MENA populations.
(b) Requirements for Study.--The comprehensive study under
subsection (a) shall include an enumeration of MENA populations across
the United States, disaggregated by subpopulation, and with respect to
each such population and subpopulation--
(1) the rates of--
(A) obesity, diabetes, sickle cell anemia, stroke,
asthma, pneumonia, lung cancer, HIV/AIDS, HPV, high
cholesterol, high blood pressure, chronic heart, lung,
and kidney disease;
(B) morbidity and mortality, including the rates of
morbidity and mortality associated with the health
conditions listed in subparagraph (A);
(C) mental health and substance use disorders; and
(D) domestic violence, dating violence, sexual
assault, sexual harassment, and stalking;
(2) analysis of--
(A) the rates described in paragraph (1);
(B) the leading causes of pregnancy-associated
morbidity and mortality; and
(C) access to health care facilities and the
associated outcomes of care;
(3) analysis, enumeration, or quantification of any other
health or health-related parameters the Secretary may deem
necessary; and
(4) analysis of the relationship between the health
factors, outcomes, and conditions described in paragraphs (1)
through (3) and the implementation of Federal health programs.
(c) Consultation.--The Secretary shall--
(1) carry out this section in consultation, as appropriate,
with the Director of the Census Bureau, the Director of the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Director of the
National Institutes of Health, the Assistant Secretary for
Mental Health and Substance Use, and other stakeholders
(including community-based organizations); and
(2) determine through such consultation the subpopulations
to be used for purposes of disaggregation of data pursuant to
subsection (b).
(d) Online Portal.--Upon conclusion of the comprehensive study
under this section, the Secretary shall establish a public online
portal to catalogue the results of the study, its underlying data, and
information in the report submitted pursuant to subsection (f).
(e) Reporting.--
(1) Interim report.--Not later than 2 years after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to
Congress a report outlining the challenges associated with, and
progress towards implementing health data collection for MENA
populations as a distinct category and the plan for completing
a comprehensive study regarding the unique health patterns and
outcomes of MENA populations.
(2) Final report.--Not later than 30 days after the
conclusion of the comprehensive study under this section, the
Secretary shall submit to Congress a report describing--
(A) the results of the study conducted under this
section; and
(B) the rulemakings and other actions the agencies
described in subsection (c)(1) can undertake to more
equitably include MENA individuals in their programs.
(f) Privacy.--The Secretary shall not include any personally
identifiable information on the online portal under subsection (e) or
in the report under subsection (f).
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