06-R 347

2006 -- H 7427

Enacted 06/23/06

J O I N T R E S O L U T I O N

SUPPORTING THE APPLICATION OF THE REPUBLIC OF CHINA (TAIWAN) FOR OBSERVER STATUS AT THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

Introduced By: Representatives Fox, and Kilmartin

Date Introduced: February 16, 2006

     WHEREAS, Good health is essential to every citizen of the world, and access to the

highest standards of health information and services is necessary to improve public health; and

     WHEREAS, The first chapter of the World Health Organization's (WHO) charter sets the

goal of attaining the highest possible level of health for all persons; and

     WHEREAS, Taiwan's achievements in the field of health are substantial, including one

of the world's highest life expectancy levels in Asia; maternal and infant mortality rates

comparable to those of western countries; the eradication of such infectious diseases as cholera,

smallpox, and the plague; and the first nation to eradicate polio and provide children with

hepatitis B vaccinations; and

     WHEREAS, Taiwan's population of 23.5 million is larger than three-fourths of the

member states already in the WHO; and

     WHEREAS, With the great potential for cross-border spread of diseases, such as the

human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), tuberculosis, malaria, severe acute respiratory syndrome

(SARS) in 2002, and the recent outbreak of avarian flu, it is crucial for all countries, including

Taiwan, to have direct and unobstructed access to information and assistance from the WHO in

order to successfully limit the spread of various infectious diseases; and

     WHEREAS, The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and its

Taiwanese counterpart agencies have enjoyed close collaboration on a wide range of public

health issues; and

     WHEREAS, In 2002, the United States House of Representatives and the United States

Senate authorized the Secretary of State to endorse observer status for Taiwan at the World

Health Organization and the House repeated its endorsement in 2005; now, therefore be it

     RESOLVED, That this General Assembly of the State of Rhode Island and Providence

Plantations hereby commends Taiwan's efforts to improve world health and supports its efforts to

gain observer status at the World Health Organization; and be it further

     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and he hereby is authorized and directed to

transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to the President of the United States; Michael

Leavitt, the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services; Dr. Lee Jong-wook, the

Director-General of the World Health Organization in Geneva, Switzerland; and Director-General

K.T. Yang of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Boston.

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LC02016

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