PRINTER'S NO. 1147
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE RESOLUTION
No.
229
Session of
2015
INTRODUCED BY SCHLOSSBERG, CORBIN, SNYDER, BAKER, DONATUCCI,
SCHWEYER, BISHOP, DiGIROLAMO, THOMAS, J. HARRIS, KINSEY,
FRANKEL, MILLARD, CALTAGIRONE, SCHLEGEL CULVER, WHEELAND,
SCHREIBER, HARHART, SAMUELSON, McNEILL, McCARTER, D. COSTA,
BROWNLEE, C. PARKER, FREEMAN, ROSS, MARSICO, STAATS,
YOUNGBLOOD, MAJOR, MATZIE, WATSON, MAHONEY, COHEN AND MURT,
APRIL 10, 2015
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, APRIL 10, 2015
A RESOLUTION
Recognizing the week of April 24 through 30, 2015, as "World
Immunization Week" in Pennsylvania.
WHEREAS, Immunizations are widely recognized as one of the
most successful and cost-effective public health tools available
for preventing disease and death; and
WHEREAS, According to the World Health Organization (WHO),
immunization can be credited with averting approximately two to
three million deaths per year; and
WHEREAS, However, infectious diseases continue to be the
leading cause of death in children and adolescents and one of
the leading causes in adults; and
WHEREAS, Worldwide, more than half of the 6.3 million deaths
in children under five years of age are due to diseases that are
preventable and treatable with simple, affordable interventions;
and
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WHEREAS, In the United States, national immunization levels
are at or near record highs for most vaccines, which has led to
very low rates of vaccine-preventable diseases; and
WHEREAS, Nevertheless, the United States is experiencing a
resurgence in previously eradicated diseases, such as measles
which was declared eradicated in 2000; and
WHEREAS, The United States experienced more than 600 cases of
measles in 2014, the greatest number of cases since eradication,
attributable to groups of unvaccinated individuals and travelers
with measles bringing the disease to the United States; and
WHEREAS, According to the United States Department of Health
and Human Services, approximately 42,000 adults and 300 children
die annually in the United States from vaccine-preventable
diseases; and
WHEREAS, According to the Department of Health, every year in
this Commonwealth, more than 150,000 babies are born, each of
whom deserves routine immunizations by two years of age to
protect against 14 vaccine-preventable diseases; and
WHEREAS, While significant advances have been made in
interventions to prevent and treat most vaccine-preventable
diseases, those interventions are often unavailable to the
populations most in need; and
WHEREAS, In some countries immunization rates are stagnating
and even declining due to the great disparity that exists in the
availability of vaccines between industrialized and developing
countries; and
WHEREAS, According to the WHO, an estimated 21.8 million of
the world's children are still not immunized with basic
vaccines; and
WHEREAS, An inadequate supply of vaccines, lack of access to
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health services, a shortage of accurate information about
immunization and insufficient political and financial support
prevent many of the world's children from being immunized; and
WHEREAS, Immunization coverage is a centerpiece in the design
and assessment of international developmental efforts; and
WHEREAS, The WHO's "World Immunization Week," celebrated in
the last week of April every year, is a global initiative that
aims to promote the use of vaccines to protect, or immunize,
people of all ages against disease; and
WHEREAS, The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization
(GAVI), a global network comprised of governments, bilateral
agencies, research and technical agencies, civil society
organizations, the WHO, UNICEF, the World Bank, the
pharmaceutical industry and the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation, have joined together to improve access to
sustainable immunization services and expand the use of all
existing safe and cost-effective vaccines; and
WHEREAS, Created in 2000, GAVI's mission is to save
children's lives and improve public health in the world's
poorest countries by increasing access to immunization and
making vaccinations more affordable; and
WHEREAS, Increased routine vaccinations for measles,
bacterial meningitis, tetanus, diphtheria, polio, pertussis,
yellow fever and rotavirus greatly improve with better
coordination and additional outside funding from groups like
GAVI; and
WHEREAS, Remarkable progress has been made in immunization in
several countries to ensure that every eligible individual is
immunized with all appropriate vaccines, irrespective of
geographical location, age, gender, disability, educational
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level, socioeconomic level, ethnic group or work condition; and
WHEREAS, Maintaining high immunization rates protects the
entire community by interrupting transmission of disease-causing
viruses and bacteria; and
WHEREAS, A week profiling the importance of immunization in
this Commonwealth and highlighting the global immunization
campaign will increase public awareness and demand for
immunization in communities, thereby improving access to
vaccinations and reducing the burden of disease in our
communities; therefore be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives recognize the
week of April 24 through 30, 2015, as "World Immunization Week"
in Pennsylvania; and be it further
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives urge residents of
this Commonwealth to support the efforts, programs, services and
organizations that work across the globe to enhance public
awareness of the importance of immunization.
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