Commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the Department of Health and Human Services

Thank you, Claude. (Claude Allen, Deputy Secretary) And congratulations on your nomination to the Fourth Circuit. I'll be sorry to lose you, but President Bush could not have picked a better man to be a judge.

I'd like to thank Patricia Ellis and the HEW Credit Union for donating the cake, punch, and gifts we will be enjoying today.

And I want to thank all of the HHS employees, new and old, as well as our guests, for coming to help us celebrate the 50th anniversary of a great department.

There may be some here who don't remember what America was like in 1953. Let me refresh your memories. Peter Pan was a new movie. Dwight Eisenhower was a new President. Red, Yellow, and Green was a new traffic light.

Ernest Hemingway won the Pulitzer Prize. Ben Hogan won the U.S. Open. The Yankees won their fifth World Series in a row. The Federal Communications Commission allowed color television. And doctors treated heart attacks with six months of bed rest and asthma with medicated cigarettes.

Our nation was entering the postwar years of growth, when health and social issues would come to center stage. That was the context in which President Eisenhower created the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare by elevating the existing Federal Security Agency to Cabinet rank.

Over the past half-century, we've seen many milestones. The first Surgeon General's report on smoking was released in 1964. The next year, Congress created Medicare, Medicaid, and Head Start.

The year after, the Public Health Service led the International Smallpox Eradication program, which declared victory over smallpox eleven years later.

In the late 1970s, Medicare and Medicaid were managed by a new agency separate from Social Security. And our education functions went to the new Department of Education.

In the 1980s, we identified the AIDS virus and began to help state governments with foster care and adoption assistance. In the 1990s, Social Security went to a separate agency and Congress reformed welfare, encouraging people to move from the dependency of a welfare check to the independence of a paycheck. And in 2000, after ten years of research, the human genome sequencing was published.

Those are just a few of the milestones. There are many more, and I would encourage those of you who played a part in them to share your stories this week. Feel free to brag about what you've done, and be proud of it.

Our Department has changed dramatically since 1953. So has health care. So has welfare. We'd rather prevent diseases than have to cure them. We'd rather protect marriages than have to provide services to homeless children. We'd rather see our fellow Americans independent than dependent. But our goal remains the health and well-being of the American people, and as we embark on our next decade, we are committed to making it our most successful decade yet.

As we reflect on our history, I thought it would be fun to hear what some of my predecessors had to say about their time at the Department.

[video of former secretaries]

I'd like to ask a man who has worked here for since the early sixties to offer his observations. Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome Associate General Counsel Dick Riseberg.

Now, I would like to present a recognition medal to the longest serving employee in each of our major divisions. I would ask each one to come up on stage when I call you, and remain up here.

With 33 years of service, from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Marcia Clark.

With 36 years of service, a budget analyst, from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Carol Watkins.

With 37 years of service, the editor of Aging Magazine, from the Administration on Aging, June Faris. June is home with a fever, so Lori Stalbaum will accept her medal.

With 39 years of service, a former key punch operator who now processes travel reimbursements, from the Program Support Center, Patricia Jenkins.

With 40 years of service in the Office of the Secretary, and he's already on stage, Richard Riseberg.

With 41 years of service, a specialist in physician recruitment, from the Indian Health Service, Darrell Pratt.

With 41 years of service, especially in the Office of Minority Health, from the Health Resources and Services Administration, Jack Westcott.

With 44 years of service: the developer of a child abuse prevention program, from the Administration on Children Youth, and Families, James Dolson.

With 47 years of service, the producer of more than 50,000 photos and slides, from the National Institutes of Health, Ralph Eisenberg.
With 49 years of service, from the Food and Drug Administration, Raymond Newberry.

With 50 years of service, the developer of countless health statistics surveys and a research scientist, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Monroe Sirken.

And finally, with an amazing 63 years of service, beginning as a field worker for Social Security in 1939, from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Daniel Baker.

Now, I'd like to ask every employee here who has more than 25 years of service to stand and be recognized.

Ladies and Gentlemen: before we enjoy the cake and punch, please join me in wishing our department a very happy birthday.

Last Revised: October 21, 2003

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