Proposal for a White House Council on Health and a National Health Policy

To:  President Barack Obama

This is a proposal to establish a White House Council on Health, to guide a National Health Policy. The mission of the Council would be to provide a coordinated federal response to the challenges confronted as people in this country try to pursue healthy lives, and to ensure that all agencies consider how their policies and programs impact the ability to pursue health. The vision of such a Council is that by allowing all Americans the ability to pursue healthy lives, we will be truly fulfilling the promise of our democracy for all our people. The National Health Policy would recognize that health does not come from pills and procedures, but from one’s environment and routines. There is no better way to address the Health Care Crisis, than to decrease the nation’s need for health care. There is no better goal than to make ours among the healthiest populations on the planet. We have the resources, we have the understanding, and we can find the direction.

The purpose of this Council would be to guide the Health Policy, and ensure that the true health of the American people is considered in all matters of public policy. Issues like healthy diet, exercise, sleep, emotional well being, and an environment safe from toxins and violence, are family issues and economic issues. Our progress in these areas is an important measure of who we are as a country.

The White House Council on Health would ensure that agencies across the federal government take into account the particular needs and concerns of health for all Americans. The Council would begin by asking each agency to analyze their current status and assess how they do, and how they could, impact health.

In particular, the Council would work to enhance, support and coordinate the efforts of existing programs to make healthy choices accessible to all. The Council would also work as a resource for each agency and the White House so that there is a comprehensive approach to the federal government's National Health Policy. During its first year, the Council would also focus on the following areas:

* Consider a working definition of “food” as a reasonable ratio of nutrition to calories. Products below that ratio would be taxed, and the tax money used to subsidize local farms, especially farms practicing sustainable agriculture. This policy would support small farms, it would strengthen communities, protect the environment, and it would make healthy food accessible to all economic groups.
* Marry the need for highspeed rail, decreased carbon emissions, and access to daily exercise by designing a national public transportation system around walking and biking. It would be a system adapted to both rural and urban communities, filling transportation needs while allowing Americans to walk. We must allow children to walk and bike safely to school again, and help all Americans incorporate healthy activity into their daily commutes and routines. Such a system would be paid for in part through carbon credits, through savings on medical care costs, and ultimately through a gasoline tax.
* Recognize the health impacts of poverty and crime, which are proven to include depression, heart disease, diabetes, as well as injuries and death caused by violence.
* Embrace the “precautionary principle” of requiring industry to be responsible for the safety of their products, so that toxins don’t add to our risk of cancer and metabolic abnormalities.
*Acknowledge that the best way to save on medical costs is to reduce the need for medical care, and direct funds toward the only TRUE prevention—health.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

The Proposal for a White House Council on Health and a National Health Policy Petition to President Barack Obama was created by and written by Dr. Rebecca Jones (rmjo@rcn.com).  This petition is hosted here at www.PetitionOnline.com as a public service. There is no endorsement of this petition, express or implied, by Artifice, Inc. or our sponsors. For technical support please use our simple Petition Help form.