Celebrating Native American Heritage Month

November is Native American Heritage Month. Over 562 Native American tribes have made extraordinary professional, educational, and cultural contributions to our community. After centuries of gross mistreatment at the hands of the US government and generations of unequal, exploitative policies that have worked to effectively rob Native Americans of their land, culture, and livelihood, it is a privilege to honor the many accomplishments that these groups are making today. Their rich ancestry and surviving traditions are a living testament of the strength and unyielding spirit shared by many great tribal nations across this land, and their legacy will continue to be a major part of the ethnic fabric of American society.

Since its inception in 1990, Native American Heritage Month has sought to promote recognition for the significant contributions the first Americans made to the establishment and growth of the United States, and increase awareness of the tragedies and discrimination these groups have experienced throughout history. This year’s theme, Pride in Our Heritage, Honor to our Ancestors, reflects the importance of remembering the rich and diverse cultural legacy of Native Americans.

In the spirit of recognizing the longstanding social and economic inequalities facing Native Americans, it is crucial that we take steps to ensure that Native Americans achieve equal access to public services, government funding, employment, business and educational opportunities. Individually and as distinct nations, Native Americans have made distinguished and significant achievements in the fields of agriculture, business, medicine, music, language, and art. I have every confidence that they will continue to distinguish themselves in those arenas as well as in government, as entrepreneurs, athletes, and scholars in the years and decades to come.

As we proceed to strengthen America’s economic and social infrastructure, it is imperative that we target existing inequalities and discriminatory policies and make an active, nationwide effort to include Native Americans in future programs through forward-thinking legislation, such as the Native American Business Development Enhancement Act of 2009.

Combating the Silent Viral Hepatitis Epidemic

On October 30th, 2009, I was joined by a bi-partisan group of 11 other Members of Congress as I introduced important legislation to improve and expand the federal response to the silent viral hepatitis epidemic in our nation. H.R.3974, the Viral Hepatitis and Liver Cancer Control Act would amend the Public Health Service Act to establish, promote, and support comprehensive prevention, research, and medical management referral programs for these and others fighting viral hepatitis.

Viral hepatitis is highly infectious – 100 times more infectious than HIV – but most people are unaware of the devastating long term consequences of chronic viral hepatitis B and C infection. Untreated, they can cause liver disease, liver cancer, and premature death decades after infection. It is estimated that 2 billion people worldwide have been infected with the hepatitis B virus, 400 million chronically. Approximately 170 million people worldwide are chronically infected with the hepatitis C virus. An estimated 5.3 million people living in the United States are infected with either hepatitis B or hepatitis C; tragically more than half are unaware of their status.

Although the incidence of infection in the United States has declined over the past several decades, there are still tens of thousands of people every year who are infected with hepatitis. Furthermore, Americans approaching retirement come from a generation before the hepatitis B vaccine and before treatment for hepatitis C was developed. Seniors, immigrants and children of immigrants from countries with high endemic infection rates of viral hepatitis, African Americans and Asian American and Pacific Islanders are particularly vulnerable. A recent article in the Journal of the American Medical Association (found here) makes the strong point that a robust federal policy approach is needed.

My bill will increase the authority of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to support state health departments in their prevention, immunization and surveillance efforts. The CDC’s Division of Viral Hepatitis has been dramatically underfunded in comparison with other CDC programs within the National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention. Increasing the authority of the Division will help to boost the argument for increased funding. This legislation is an important step forward and I look forward to the passage of the bill.

House Passes Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 2009

This week, the House passed legislation to permanently reform the way Medicare pays physicians.H.R.3961, the Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 2009 will repeal a 21 percent fee reduction scheduled for January 2010 and replace it with a stable system that ends the cycle of threats of ever-larger fee cuts followed by short-term patches. Permanent reform of physician payments in Medicare will guarantee that Medicare beneficiaries continue to enjoy the excellent access to care that they do today. It will also follow the President’s lead by ending a budget gimmick that artificially reduces the deficit by assuming physician payments will be cut by 40 percent over the next several years even though Congress has consistently intervened to prevent those cuts from occurring.

By fixing this system in a responsible way, we are ensuring that our seniors have reliable access to their doctors and the primary care they need. This bill tackles seniors’ main concern – preventing pay cuts that could encourage doctors to stop seeing Medicare patients. It builds on the historic health insurance reform bill the House passed earlier this month, which will lower premiums, extend the solvency of Medicare by five years, improve preventive and primary care for seniors, and close the “donut hole” gap in prescription drug coverage.

H.R. 3961 is supported by a wide range of organizations representing patients, doctors and other providers, including the American Medical Association, AARP, the Military Officers Association of America, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American College of Physicians, the American College of Surgeons, the Center for Medicare Advocacy, the Medicare Rights Center, and the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare.

Permanent physician payment reform:

• Preserves seniors’ access to their doctors with a guaranteed update in 2010 by replacing the pending 21 percent fee cut with an update for 2010 based on the Medicare economic index while a new payment system is being put in place.
• Keeps doctors’ pay steady through fairer growth targets, which are achieved by wiping away accumulated deficits from current spending targets to provide for a fresh start, but still holds physicians accountable for spending growth. Excludes items not paid under the Medicare physician fee schedule such as chemotherapy drugs and laboratory services from revised growth targets.
• Promotes primary care that can keep you healthier longer by providing an extra growth allowance for primary care services to promote access to primary care practitioners in Medicare and throughout the health care system.
• Encourages integrated care so your doctors communicate on your care through Accountable Care Organizations, which incentivize physicians to take responsibility for improving quality and reducing costs. Accountable Care Organizations may “opt out” of the national spending targets and establish their own organization-specific targets.

2010 Census

Next year, the United States will be conducting the decennial census, our constitutionally mandated survey of the nation’s population. The census is a count of everyone residing in the United States, and the results help determine each state’s congressional representation and how much federal funding is allocated to our districts. They also help shape decisions by the national and local governments, such as where to increase services for the elderly, or where to build new roads, schools, or houses. Thus, the decennial count will have a significant impact in investments in our area, and it is important that everyone be counted.

One key element of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) that I advocated for was additional funding for the 2010 United States Census. The ARRA provided $1 billion in additional funding to hire new personnel, address operational and program risks, and to increase outreach efforts to hard-to-count communities in the 2010 census.

I recently met with several representatives from the Census Bureau, and was pleased to hear that they are already putting these funds into action by hiring new personnel in the Bay Area and around the country. Recruiting for some field operations staff is still in progress, and recruitment for peak census operations will start this fall, and continue until the spring of 2010. As chairman of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC), I have met with Dr. Robert Groves, Director of the Census Bureau to ensure a fair and accurate count of everyone in our country, including Asians and Pacific Islanders. CAPAC has been a strong advocate for census funding, particularly for the partnership and outreach program and paid advertising that are critical to reaching hard-to-count communities, including those with limited English proficiency.

CAPAC is dedicated to:

• Advocating for increased data collection, analyses, and dissemination of information about AAPIs;
• Collaborating with the Census Bureau to ensure the availability of disaggregated data within the AAPI community; and
• Working to ensure that the Census Bureau has the resources necessary to conduct an accurate count of everyone in our country.

Currently there is insufficient information on AAPI communities, making it difficult to assess and adequately address our needs. CAPAC’s goal is to increase the disaggregated data showing the particular needs of our diverse ethnic subgroups.

Here are a few websites that you might find helpful when you and your community participate in the Census in the New Year;

Census Home Page

http://www.census.gov/

Scams & Bogus Web Sites

http://www.census.gov/survey_participants/related_information/phishing_email_scams_bogus_census_web_sites.html

Census Countdown Clock

http://www.census.gov/schools/2010_census/index.html

Are you in the Survey?

http://www.census.gov/survey_participants/

Census in Schools

http://www.census.gov/schools/

Healthy Families During The Upcoming Season

While we continue to move towards healthcare reform for all Americans, it is important that we as individuals do not forget to take care of our own health needs. With the holiday season coming up, it is especially important that all Americans pay attention to what we are eating, and making sure that our nutritional needs are met, and that our food is safe and healthy.

Food safety is especially important when preparing a holiday meal. Failure to adhere to safety guidelines when thawing, stuffing, or cooking a turkey can have disastrous results. In order to help Americans have a safe holiday dinner, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have created a website to provide information about how to safely prepare a holiday turkey.

In addition to food safety, it is also important to help families prepare meals that meet their families’ nutritional needs. The CDC has provided a great deal of information to help Americans learn about how to maintain a balanced diet, including general nutrition information, and some tricks and tips for maintaining a healthy diet during the holidays, and throughout the rest of the year.

It is also important, especially during the holidays, that we remember those who may not be able to provide for themselves, and that we work to make sure that they have access to a variety of nutritious foods. This is especially important during the current economic downturn, and I am pleased to see that as a result of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act that was passed earlier this year, the USDA has expanded nutrition assistance programs to ensure those in need have continued access to healthy food options.

Volunteering in Our Community 2009

As we enter the holiday season, social needs resulting from the economic downturn will grow to immeasurable levels. Despite the many hardships that communities are facing, people everywhere are coming together to solve our nation’s problems. Volunteering makes a positive difference in our community. Volunteers have started health clinics that give free services, mentorship programs for our youth, neighborhood clean-ups, and more. Last year in the San Jose area alone, more than half a million adults volunteered to mentor young people, to feed the hungry, and to spend time with our seniors.

Our government is supporting those interested in volunteering with resources and information on volunteer opportunities across America. "United We Serve" is a nationwide service initiative that works to strengthen the effect of existing organizations by connecting new volunteers to community service opportunities and to encourage individuals to develop their own "do-it-yourself" projects. Alternatively, you can also visit the Volunteer San Jose website at http://www.volunteersanjose.org to find things in and around the San Jose area.

As a former Peace Corps volunteer in El Salvador in the 1960s, I spent two years working with El Salvadorians to build better schools, construct bridges and roads, and provide vaccinations to children. My experience with Salvadoran youth sparked my lifelong passion for education and public service. To hear more about my thoughts on the President’s call to service, please watch http://serve.gov/videos.asp?tbl_videos_id=199.

Honoring our Veterans

Last week, on Veterans Day, we honored the service and sacrifices our nation’s veterans have made, a sacrifice which I remind myself of every day. Although we can never adequately thank our brave veterans and troops for their service to our nation, we humbly salute them and their families for their sacrifice, and as a Member of Congress, I am committed to making certain that America takes care of her sons and daughters and that their contributions are never forgotten. Below I have listed a few websites that may be useful for veterans, active military, and their families, as well as information about several pieces of legislation that the House has passed this year and signed by President Obama.

Please visit these websites for more information on military family and veterans issues

• Post/9-11 GI Bill information - http://www.gibill.va.gov/
• National Archives, Military Records - http://www.archives.gov/veterans/
• Department of Defense, Family Support http://www.militaryhomefront.dod.mil/
• Department of Veterans Affairs - http://www.va.gov/

You can read my statement made last weekend about Veterans Day here.

Priority Legislation Passed By the House

H.R. 3082 – FY 2010 Military Construction/VA Appropriations

• Adds $14.5 billion to the FY2010 budget and provides funding for FY2011 to ensure the best care for America’s wounded warriors in the future.
• The largest veterans funding increase ever requested by a President!
• Awaiting action in the Senate - http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d111:S.1407:

H.R. 1211, Women Veterans Health Care Improvement Act, would expand and improve VA services for the 1.8 million women veterans.

H.R. 3219, Veterans’ Insurance and Health Care Improvements Act of 2009, gives veterans greater flexibility in their insurance choices and ensures that veterans are able to plan appropriately for their financial security.

H.R. 3949, Veterans’ Small Business Assistance and Servicemembers Protection Act of 2009, addresses reintegration challenges for veterans and provides enhanced protections for veteran-owned small business, deployed service members, and family members of veterans.

Priority Legislation Passed By the House and signed by President Obama

Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act of 2009 (P.L. 111-81)

• President Obama signed legislation giving Congress the authority to fund VA medical accounts one year ahead of schedule (October 22, 2009).

Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2009 (P.L. 111-32)

• Expands the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill to cover the full cost of college for surviving military children by creating the “Marine Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry” scholarship to provide education benefits to children of deceased active duty service members.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (P.L. 111-5)

• Provided an economic stimulus payment of $250 to disabled veterans receiving VA compensation or pension.

From the Department of Veterans Affairs

Agent Orange Veterans

• VA announced it establish a service-connection for Vietnam veterans with three specific illnesses (B cell leukemias, Parkinson’s Disease, and ischemic heart disease) based on evidence of an association with the herbicides referred to as Agent Orange. As a result, veterans no longer will have to prove an association between these illnesses and their military service. http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange/