WHEREAS, Mother’s Day, 2017, marks the start of the 18th annual National Women’s Health Week, established by the United States Department of Health and Human Services Office on Women’s Health; and
WHEREAS, Women are more likely to serve as the primary caregiver for their children, spouse, parents, and others, making their health less of a priority; and
WHEREAS, The first objective of Women’s Health Week is to empower women to make their mental, physical, and reproductive health a priority in their everyday lives; and
WHEREAS, The second objective of Women’s Health Week is to raise awareness about health issues unique to women, about disparities women experience in health care as compared to men, and about disparities women of color experience in health care; and
WHEREAS, Understanding of these issues and disparities is critical to the development of strategies for improving the health care and the quality of life for women and girls; and
WHEREAS, Violence against women has a significant impact on their health; one in five women will become victims of sexual assault in their lifetime and more than 4.5 million women currently living in California have been victims of domestic violence; and
WHEREAS, Women face unique health risks by virtue of their reproductive status; and
WHEREAS, Women and girls are at a greater risk for complications resulting from sexually transmitted diseases, including pelvic inflammatory disease, infertility, and cervical cancer; and
WHEREAS, Annually, about 12,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer; and
WHEREAS, One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime; and
WHEREAS, African American women are about 40 percent more likely to die from breast cancer than white women due to less access to early-detection screening and treatment; and
WHEREAS, Women have a longer life expectancy and experience more chronic diseases than men; and
WHEREAS, Osteoporosis is estimated to affect approximately one out of ten women at 60 years of age, one out of five women at 70 years of age, and two-thirds of women at 90 years of age, which leads to one out of two women sustaining an osteoporosis-related injury in their lifetime; and
WHEREAS, Heart disease is the leading cause of death for California women, and women tend to die at an earlier age from heart disease than men because they tend to receive care later in the course of the disease; and
WHEREAS, Diabetes is a common cause of heart disease for women, approximately 13 million women in the United States have been diagnosed with diabetes, and the prevalence of diabetes is at least two to four times higher among women of color than among white women; and
WHEREAS, Women of certain racial and ethnic minority groups are disproportionately affected by additional dangerous health conditions, including tobacco-related cancers, heart disease, depression, and reproductive health risks; and
WHEREAS, Women of color face greater barriers to accessing care; and
WHEREAS, Historically, women, and particularly women of color, have been underrepresented in clinical health studies and drug trials; and
WHEREAS, The lack of clinical drug trials conducted on women leads to misinformation about dosages and how certain drugs will affect women’s bodies; and
WHEREAS, Women’s health needs to be at the forefront of health care discussions to ensure equality in health care and to safeguard access to resources for diseases that primarily impact women; and
WHEREAS, Continued efforts to meet the health care needs of California’s women and girls are necessary; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, That the week of May 14, 2017, to May 20, 2017, inclusive, is hereby proclaimed Women’s Health Week, and that Mother’s Day to the following Sunday each year thereafter is hereby proclaimed Women’s Health Week, and that efforts to increase awareness about all women’s health issues are encouraged and promoted; and be it further
Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.