Sec. 2. Findings

231 words·~1 min read·/bill/116/hr/6070/ih/section-2

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Congress makes the following findings: The United States-Mexico border is an interdependent and dynamic region of approximately 15,000,000 residents and millions of border crossings each year, with significant and unique public health challenges. These challenges include low rates of health insurance coverage, poor access to health care services, lack of education or access to information, poverty, and high rates of dangerous diseases, such as tuberculosis and West Nile virus, as well as other noncommunicable diseases such as cardiovascular disease, asthma, diabetes, and obesity.

As the 2020 dengue outbreak in Mexico and many parts of Latin America illustrates, diseases do not respect international boundaries, and a strong public health effort at and along the borders is crucial to not only protect and improve the health of Americans but also to help secure the country against threats to biosecurity and other emerging threats. For 20 years, the United States-Mexico Border Health Commission has served as a crucial binational institution to address these unique and truly cross-border health issues.

In 2016, 66 percent of Canadians lived within 100 miles of the United States border. The 2003 epidemic of severe acute respiratory syndrome caused more than 250 illnesses in the Greater Toronto Area, just 80 miles from New York. The recent coronavirus outbreak has highlighted the need for continued coordination of resources, effective communication, and information sharing between countries to address emerging public health crises.