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Today, CBC Chairman G. K. Butterfield (NC-01) participated in a discussion hosted by the House Energy and Commerce Committee Democrats in partnership with the Congressional Black Caucus, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus to highlight the need for health equity. April is National Minority Health Month.

Remarks by CBC Chairman Butterfield, as prepared for delivery, follow:

Thank you Ranking Member Pallone for convening this important health disparities forum.  I thank the panelists for sharing insight and expertise on addressing health disparities.  This full room shows the tremendous level of interest all of our constituents have in finding ways to strengthen our health care system for patients across the country. 

That we are meeting here today in the Congressional Visitor Center and that there are no Republican Members from the House Energy and Commerce Committee speaks volumes.  477 days have passed since the beginning of the 114th Congress and the Republican Majority has been unwilling to hold a single hearing on health disparities like we are today.  

By all measureable statistics – from health outcomes to participation in health professions – African Americans lag behind.  Republican opposition to the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid Expansion has slowed progress. 

In 2012, the Supreme Court ruled that state expansion of Medicaid under the ACA is optional.  Based on that decision, nineteen states, including my home state of North Carolina, effectively eliminated access to healthcare for many low-income African Americans and denied millions of individuals billions of federal dollars, which could have stimulated each state’s economy. 

Despite repeated efforts by Republicans to halt its progress, nearly 13 million Americans enrolled in health insurance through the ACA. 

The ACA alone cannot eliminate the chronic health disparities that plague our country today but it can certainly help. 

Today’s forum is an opportunity to have conversations about three important areas of disparities which exist in our nation.  African Americans are 50 percent more likely to die from heart disease or stroke prematurely than White Americans, so discussing how to improve cardiovascular health outcomes is especially significant to my constituents. 

Also key to improving health care in our country is finding more ways to encourage diversity in our nation’s workforce and reducing the number of Health Professional Shortage Areas in communities of color and rural communities. 

Finally, I appreciate that this forum will discuss ways to include African Americans in cutting edge research and development. 

I am pleased to welcome Dr. Gary Bennett from Duke University in North Carolina’s First Congressional District who will discuss some of his discoveries utilizing digital tools to combat obesity. 

Congress must continue to protect important federal programs like the Prevention and Public Health Fund and Community Health Centers for all Americans regardless of race, gender, geography, or beliefs. 

We must think creatively to establish policies to reduce the disparities in the communities we represent. 

For that reason, I am pleased that President Obama recently signed into law my legislation to add the Zika virus to the Tropical Disease Priority Review Voucher Program. 

Finally, I am hopeful that Congress will pass my bill to establish a National Prostate Cancer Plan to address disparities in prostate cancer prevalence for African Americans. 

African American men have the highest prostate cancer rates of any racial or ethnic group.  Black men are twice as likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer and nearly two and a half times as likely to die from the disease. 

Prostate cancer can strike anyone.  Many of us have either been personally affected by prostate cancer or have lost a loved one who suffered from the disease.  Enactment of my bill will be a giant step forward in our battle to combat this treatable disease so that men can live longer and healthier lives. 

That’s why I’m hopeful the Energy and Commerce Committee will honor my request to expeditiously hold a hearing on this important bill. 

I want to express my sincere appreciation for the commitment of each person in this room to eliminating health disparities in our country. 

Thank you very much for being here today. 

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Since its establishment in 1971, Members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) have joined together to empower America’s neglected citizens and address their legislative concerns. For more than 40 years, the CBC has consistently been the voice for people of color and vulnerable communities in Congress and has been committed to utilizing the full Constitutional power and statutory authority of the United States government to ensure that all U.S. citizens have an opportunity to achieve the American Dream. To learn more about the Congressional Black Caucus, visit http://cbc-butterfield.house.gov.

Media inquiries: Tyler Clifford at (202) 226-9776 or Tyler.Clifford@mail.house.gov