Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 106 Part 6.djvu/850

 106 STAT. 5408 PROCLAMATION 6478—SEPT. 26, 1992 and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim the week of Novem- •'•' her 20 through November 26, 1992, as National Farm-City Week. I encourage all Americans, in rural and urban communities alike, to join ., in recognizing the accomplishments of our farmers and all those hard- IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty- • third day of September, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-two, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and seventeenth. GEORGE BUSH Proclamation 6478 of September 26, 1992 Child Health Day, 1992 By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation On Child Health Day, we pause as a Nation to assess our children's state of health and to reaffirm our commitment to providing every young American with the best possible start in life, beginning with high quality prenatal care throughout pregnancy for expectant mothers and extending through each child's formative years. When we examine history, one area of child health that has been marked by remarkable improvement is that of communicable childhood diseases. Over the years scientists and physicians have developed the means to protect children from diseases that, in the past, killed or disabled thousands of boys and girls. Through the practice of childhood immunization, the United States helped to lead the way in eliminating smallpox worldwide by 1980. Heartened by such progress, we aimed to rid the United States of another contagious and potentially devastating disease, measles, by 1990. Unfortunately, however, we remain short of that goal. Despite the existence of effective childhood vaccines for measles and eight other contagious diseases, more than 50,000 cases of measles were reported in the United States from 1989 to 1991. Out of these cases, 160 persons died. Such a tragic toll is all the more intolerable because it is preventable. Through a series of vaccinations beginning as early as birth, children can be protected against not only measles but also mumps, rubella, polio, diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough), tetanus, hepatitis B, and Haemophilus influenzae Type B. While as many as 5 in 10 infants and toddlers are receiving all of their recommended childhood immunizations on time, thousands of other children remain at risk of contracting life-threatening or disabling illnesses. To encourage parents to fulfill their responsibility to have their children immunized and to expand access to vaccinations, the Department of Health and Human Services is moving forward with a concerted immunization initiative. Building on several local pilot programs that were developed in 1991, this initiative will increase the number of vac-
 * working individuals who cooperate in producing the abundance of agricultural goods that strengthen and enrich the United States.

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