Resolution to create the Tom Harkin Integrative Healthcare Pioneer Award, bestowed to a legislator who advances the use of integrative healthcare

November 29, 2010

WHEREAS, the current health care system is predicated on the treatment of disease and fails to addresses the underlying causes of chronic disease; and

WHEREAS, a patient-centric team approach focused on treatment of the person and not just the disease leads to better individual outcomes and cost-effective utilization of limited health care resources; and

WHEREAS, integration of leading-edge medical technology, innovative medical therapies, natural medicine and alternative therapies enables creation of comprehensive care teams for inpatient and outpatient care; and

WHEREAS, individuals in the United States are increasingly using lifestyle changes, including diet, exercise, smoking cessation and stress reduction, to decrease their risk of developing serious healthcare problems and to restore health; and

WHEREAS, the projected primary care provider shortage is expected to reach 45,000 by 2020, crippling systemic efforts to transform healthcare delivery systems; and

WHEREAS, our current system fails to utilize, or underutilizes the personalized care, specialty services, accessibility and affordability of more than three million health care professionals seeking to provide care in an integrated health care environment; now

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, by the National Foundation for Women Legislators' National Policy Committee on Healthcare & Empowerment, that the Committee shall annually award the Tom Harkin Integrative Healthcare Pioneer Award to a legislator who advances the use of integrative healthcare by:

  1. Increasing access to those qualified providers who address the underlying causal factors associated with chronic disease.
  2. Supporting the integration of state-of-the-art technology and quality therapies, using comprehensive care teams to treat the whole person and not just the disease.
  3. Advancing development of systemic, multidimensional, patient-centric care that supports health and wellness.
  4. Supporting implementation of programs that facilitate the inherent ability of the human body to maintain and restore optimal health, including lifestyle changes and health promotion activities tailored to the individual's diet, exercise and health history.