Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Global Healthcare Cooperation Act of 2010. This legislation takes measured but important steps to enhance global healthcare cooperation and help developing countries address public health challenges. The Global Healthcare Cooperation Act will bolster the ranks of healthcare workers serving in developing countries by enabling American legal permanent residents to assist with overseas public health emergencies, and by responsibly regulating the ``brain drain'' of skilled healthcare workers from underdeveloped countries to the U.S. I look forward to working with my colleagues to see these provisions enacted into law. While many nations are currently experiencing shortages of healthcare personnel, the lack of doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers in the world's poorest nations is an urgent crisis. There are many factors contributing to this crisis, but the massive ``brain drain'' of trained healthcare workers from the poorest nations to the richest is a central cause. According to the World Health Organization, Africa loses 20,000 health professionals a year as part of this brain drain. In Ethiopia, for example, there are only 1,806 doctors serving a population of 80 million. By comparison, there are 5,074 doctors serving the 600,000 residents of Washington D.C., and 17,507 doctors serving the 5.3 million residents of Cook County in my home state of Illinois.…”