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REMARKS BY: DONNA E. SHALALA, SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES PLACE: Privacy Regulation Announcement, Washington, D.C. DATE: December 20, 2000
Mr. President, welcome to the coolest, smartest, richest, most effective-and best looking-department in government. For eight years, we've had the pleasure of working with you.and of watching you lead with courage and compassion. And for eight years we've been waiting for you-waiting for you to finally come and visit us! Mr. President, to tell you the truth, we were starting to feel a little like Nebraska.
But that's OK-because I know that the important thing isn't that you've come here today-but how far America has come under in the last eight years under your leadership. You haven't just made America wealthier-you've made it fairer, kinder and better.
For all your contributions, we welcome you to the Department of Health and Human Services. Mr. President, we welcome you as a constant voice for change.a voice for opportunity.and a voice for the voiceless that has echoed through our inner cities and rural towns.across our sweeping plains.and in the imagination of every citizen. We welcome you for seeing things not as they are-but as they could be. And we welcome you for bringing to Washington a dream of America where every child can enjoy a healthy start.where every young family can enjoy the fruits of our prosperity.and where every senior citizen can enjoy an old age with dignity.
I want to thank each and every one of my employees-the best and the brightest-for working so hard with you.and with me.over the past eight years to help further that dream-and the very dream of America itself. Look at the difference eight years have made:
By extending the life of the Medicare Trust Fund for 24 years, you've helped ensure that the lifeline-and the promise-of Medicare will not be broken.
By raising childhood immunization rates to record highs.and by decreasing both infant mortality and teen pregnancy rates to all-time lows.you've opened the doors of opportunity for our children.
By helping millions of Americans to move from welfare to work-you've helped them move from despair to dignity.
By insuring nearly 2.5 million children through S-CHIP, you've provided more children with healthy foundations on which they can build their hopes and futures.
By prohibiting federal agencies from using genetic information in hiring and promotion, you've guaranteed that no federal employer could ever review our medical records with our resumes.
By supporting-and signing-the "Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act" you've helped ensure that genetic information couldn't be used to discriminate against individuals with employer sponsored health insurance.
And by ceaselessly working to eliminate racial and ethnic health disparities.to increase AIDS and cancer research.to improve access to health insurance.to improve food safety and drug approvals.to confront bioterrorism.and to ensure unprecedented investments in biomedical research-you've proven that America isn't just great-but good.
These are accomplishments we are all proud of-and accomplishments that affect the life of every American. What you announced today-the new federal privacy regulation- will also affect the life of every American.
It will improve patients' access and control of their medical information. It will set boundaries on the use and release of medical information. It will establish standards that health care providers and others must meet in protecting the privacy of health information. It will impose penalties for violations of medical privacy standards. And it will balance our need for privacy protection with the public responsibility to support national priorities-like public health.
Mr. President, we salute you for insisting that we move forward on privacy when Congress wouldn't-and for your sustained leadership on this issue. For decades to come, your new federal privacy rule will be seen as a landmark in patient protection.It will be remembered as a hallmark of this Administration...And it will set a benchmark for future administrations and Congresses. Thank you, Mr. President.
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