Child Health Day, 2020

Proclamation 10094 of October 3, 2020

Child Health Day, 2020

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

Children are one of life's greatest blessings. They
bring boundless joy to families and enrich our
communities. On Child Health Day, we are reminded of
our solemn obligation to love and protect these
precious lives, and we recommit to helping America's
youth reach their full potential.

Our Nation is home to the greatest doctors and medical
professionals in the world, and yet, the health of too
many American children is compromised at the earliest
stages of life. To end this tragedy, my Administration
is taking action to empower doctors and families so
that children thrive at every stage of development. To
reduce the rate of infant death, we have invested more
than $100 million in the Healthy Start initiative,
which particularly targets minority communities. We
have also updated and improved clinical guidelines that
healthcare professionals use for prenatal checkups,
leading to safer births and healthier babies. As
President, and as a father and grandfather, I will
continue to work to ensure that every American family
has the ability to raise healthy children, regardless
of their income, education, or racial or ethnic
background.

It is also vitally important to safeguard the mental,
spiritual, and physical health of our children as they
grow up. To this end, the First Lady launched her BE
BEST initiative in 2018, an effort that has promoted
whole-of-person wellness for children since its
inception. BE BEST encourages character development and
respect for others and provides education, awareness,
and coping skills to help youth navigate issues they
may face, including online safety and opioid and drug
misuse. The positive habits encouraged by the BE BEST
program have and will continue to develop future
leaders, strengthening our Nation and affecting
positive change in communities throughout the United
States.

This year, we also celebrate 10 years of success in the
Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting
(MIECHV) program, which helps prevent child neglect and
provides families with the tools they need to raise
children who are physically, socially, and emotionally
healthy. The First Lady and I recognize the importance
of creating a healthy environment in which to raise a
child, and my Administration will always support
children in need.

In recent months, we have also seen the effects of the
coronavirus on the health of our Nation's children.
While children are at a very low risk from the
coronavirus itself, lockdowns and school closures pose
significant risks to the health and wellbeing of our
young people. My Administration recognizes that
extended school closures cause students to fall behind
academically and can have devastating effects on the
long-term prospects for school-aged children. Many
children, especially those from low-income and minority
communities, rely on schools for resources that they do
not have access to when schools are closed. Schools
provide meals, counseling, physical activity, social
interaction, and other experiences that play a crucial
role in the development of our young people. For these
reasons, lockdowns and school closures can often pose a
greater risk to children than the coronavirus, and we
must take action to both empower parents and students

to take control of their education and equip teachers
to best ensure the wellbeing of their students.

In recognition of the vital role schools play in the
health of our Nation's children, my Administration has
taken aggressive action to help our schools open
safely. The bipartisan Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and
Economic Security Act, which I signed into law in
March, designates $750 million--in addition to the
$10.6 billion already appropriated--in funding to the
Head Start and Early Head Start programs, which help
prepare low-income children for kindergarten.
Furthermore, we have provided school districts with $25
billion for personal protective equipment and other
resources to lower the risk of the spread of
coronavirus, and I have called on the Congress to
provide an additional $105 billion toward this effort.
We have also provided every State with revolutionary
point-of-care tests that deliver results in under 15
minutes. In preparation for the imminent delivery of a
safe, effective coronavirus vaccine, last month I also
directed the Department of Health and Human Services to
issue guidance under the Public Readiness and Emergency
Preparedness Act which allows State-licensed pharmacy
professionals to administer vaccines to individuals
ages three and older. This action will greatly expand
vaccine access, especially among children, and will
expedite our ongoing recovery effort. As one Nation, we
will continue our push to safely reopen while also
protecting the most vulnerable among us.

Our Nation's children are the hope and promise of our
future. Parents, educators, clergy members, mentors,
and community volunteers all influence and shape the
lives of young people. On this Child Health Day, let us
renew our commitment to the vital role we all share in
raising, nurturing, protecting, empowering, and
encouraging America's youth so that they may enjoy
healthy, happy, and fulfilled lives.

The Congress, by a joint resolution approved May 18,
1928, as amended (36 U.S.C. 105), has called for the
designation of the first Monday in October as Child
Health Day and has requested that the President issue a
proclamation in observance of this day.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the
United States, do hereby proclaim Monday, October 5,
2020, as Child Health Day. I call upon families, child
health professionals, faith-based and community
organizations, and governments to help ensure that
America's children stay safe and healthy.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
third day of October, in the year of our Lord two
thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United
States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.