ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON MINORITY HEALTH

PURPOSE

The revision and extension of programs of the Office of Minority Health (OMH) that are stipulated underSection 201 of Public Law 105-392, directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish anadvisory committee for the purpose of advising the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) onissues related to minority health.

AUTHORITY

42 U.S.C. 300u-6, Section 1707 of the Public Health Service Act, as amended, by the Minority Health andHealth Disparities Research and Education Act of 2000, P. L. 106-525. The Committee also is governedby provisions of Public Law 92-463, as amended (5 U.S.C. Appendix 2), which sets forth standards for theformation and use of advisory committees.

FUNCTION

The Advisory Committee on Minority Health shall advise the DHHS, through the Deputy AssistantSecretary on Minority Health, on improving the health of each racial and ethnic minority group and ondevelopment of the following goals and specific program activities of the OMH:

1. Establishing short-range and long-range goals and objectives and coordinate all other activities withinthe Public Health Service that relate to disease prevention, health promotion, service delivery, and researchconcerning such individuals;
2. entering into interagency agreements with other agencies of the PublicHealth Service;
3. supporting research, demonstrations, and evaluations to test new and innovativemodels;
4. increasing knowledge and understanding of health risk factors;
5. developing mechanisms thatsupport better information dissemination, education, prevention, and service delivery to individuals fromdisadvantaged backgrounds, including individuals who are members of racial or ethnic minority groups;
6. ensuring that the National Center for Health Statistics collects data on the health status of each minoritygroup;
7. with respect to individuals who lack proficiency in speaking the English language, enter intocontracts with public and nonprofit private providers of primary health services for the purpose ofincreasing the access of the individuals to such services by developing and carrying out programs toprovide bilingual or interpretive services;
8. supporting a national minority health resource center to carryout the following:
   • facilitating the exchange of information regarding matters relating to healthinformation and health promotion, preventive health services, and education in appropriate use of healthcare;
   • facilitating access to such information;
   • assisting in the analysis of issues and problemsrelating to such matters;
   • providing technical assistance with respect to the exchange of suchinformation (including facilitating the development of materials for such technical assistance);
9. carryingout programs to improve access to health care services for individuals with limited proficiency in speaking the English language (activities under the preceding sentence shall include developing and evaluating modelprojects); and
10. advising in matters related to the development, implementation, and evaluation of healthprofessions education in decreasing disparities in health care outcomes, including cultural competency as amethod of eliminating health disparities.

STRUCTURE

The Committee shall consist of 12 voting members, in addition to non-voting, ex-officio members. Votingmembers shall be appointed by the Secretary or designee from among individuals who are not officers oremployees of the Federal Government and who have expertise regarding issues of minority health. Theracial and ethnic minority groups shall be equally represented among such members. The non-voting, ex-officio members of the Committee shall be such officials of the DHHS as the Secretary or designeedetermines to be appropriate. The Chairperson of the Committee shall be selected by the Secretary ordesignee from among the voting members of the Committee. All voting members of the Committee areclassified as special Government employees (SGEs).

Each member shall be appointed to serve a term of four years. Terms of more than two years arecontingent upon renewal of the Committee by appropriate action prior to its termination. The term ofoffice of the Chairperson shall be two years.

If a vacancy occurs on the Committee, a new member shall be appointed by the Secretary or designeewithin 90 days from the date that the vacancy occurs, and serve for the remainder of the term for which thepredecessor of such member was appointed. The vacancy shall not effect the power of remaining membersto execute the duties of the Committee.

With approval of the Secretary or designee, the Committee may establish subcommittees that are composedof members of the parent committee, as well as other individuals who have expertise regarding issues ofminority health (including racial and ethnic health disparities) to provide assistance in carrying out itsfunction. The Department Committee Management Officer shall be notified upon establishment of eachsubcommittee and shall be given information regarding its name, membership, function, and estimatedfrequency of meetings.

Management and support services for Committee activities shall be provided by the OMH, a staff programwithin the Office of Public Health and Science.

MEETINGS

Meetings shall be held approximately four times each year at the call of the designated Federal officer(DFO). The DFO is responsible for developing the meeting agenda; the meeting agenda may be developedin collaboration with the Committee Chair. The DFO or other official to whom the authority has beendelegated shall be present at all meetings of the full Committee and any subcommittees that are establishedto assist the Committee. A quorum for the conduct of business by the full Committee shall consist of amajority of the Committee's voting members.

Meetings shall be open to the public except as determined otherwise by the Secretary or designee, inkeeping with the guidelines under Government in the Sunshine Act, 5 U.S.C. 552b(c). Notice of allmeetings shall be given to the public.

Meetings shall be conducted, and records of the proceedings shall be kept, as required by applicable lawsand Departmental policies.

COMPENSATION

Members of the Committee who are not officers or employees of the United States shall be paid at a ratenot to exceed $200 per day (including travel time) that they are engaged in performance of the functions ofthe Committee. Such compensation cannot be in an amount in excess of the daily equivalent of the annualmaximum rate of basic pay payable under the General Schedule (under Title 5 U.S.C.) for positions aboveGS-15. Non-members who are selected to work with the Committee as special consultants and/orsubcommittee members will be compensated for services performed at a rate of pay that is consistent withthe rate of pay authorized for members of the parent committee. Individuals who serve as members of theparent committee and/or subcommittees also may receive per diem and reimbursement for any applicabletravel expenses, as authorized by Section 5703, Title 5 U.S.C., for persons who are employedintermittently in the Government service. Members of the parent committee and/or subcommittees who areofficers or employees of the United States Government shall serve without compensation.

ANNUAL COST ESTIMATE

Estimated annual cost for operating the committee, including compensation and travel expenses formembers, but excluding staff support, is $239,828. Estimated annual person-years of staff supportrequired is 1.15 at an estimated annual cost of $120,762.

REPORTS

When it is determined by the Secretary or designee that a meeting is to be closed or partially closed to thepublic, in accordance with Government in the Sunshine Act at 5 U.S.C. 552b(c) and the Federal AdvisoryCommittee Act, then a report shall be prepared which shall contain, at a minimum, a list of members andtheir business addresses, the Committee's function, dates and places of meetings, and a summary ofCommittee's activities during the fiscal year. A copy of the report shall be provided to the Department'sCommittee Management Officer.

TERMINATION DATE

Unless approved by appropriate action prior to its expiration, the Advisory Committee on Minority Healthwill terminate on September 17, 2009.

Approved:

September 12, 2007                                              /s/
__________________________ _______________________________________
Date                                             Secretary of Health and Human Services