WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator
Lisa Murkowski joined colleagues across the aisle to commemorate “Minority
Health Awareness,” in a resolution that passed the Senate unanimously. “Alaska
Natives, and many minorities nationwide, suffer health problems at an
alarmingly high rate,” said Murkowski. “There are many reasons and many factors
at play – but the first step to fixing the problem, simply, is spotlighting the
problem through information.”
Senator Murkowski was the
lead Republican co-sponsor on the resolution put forward by Senator Ben Cardin
(D-MD). The resolution also addresses the problems faced by African
Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanics and Native Hawaiians – minority
populations that face disproportionate rates of diseases and health problems,
as well as a lack of access to health care.
“Compared to most American
communities, heart disease, diabetes, tuberculosis and alcoholism are rampant
in Alaska Native and American Indian populations,” Murkowski continued. “And by
this resolution my colleagues and I are saying ‘It doesn’t have to be this
way.’ There’s no reason for a man in Shaktoolik or a woman in Selawik to
have worse odds of a long, healthy life than the average American.”
American Indians and
Alaska Natives have a life expectancy 5.2 years less than the national
average. The Department of Health and Human Services has identified heart
disease, malignant neoplasm, unintentional injuries, diabetes and stroke as the
five leading causes of death among American Indians and Alaska Natives.
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