Proclamation 6061—National Hospice Month, 1989 and 1990

Employing the skills of a full cadre of health care professionals and volunteers -- including physicians, nurses, counselors, therapists, and members of the clergy -- hospice care enables terminally ill individuals to live peacefully and comfortably in their final days. The dedicated men and women who provide hospice care help terminally ill patients to face natural death without feeling alone or unprepared. They also help patients' families cope with emotional suffering and loss. A vital portion of our Nation's health care system, hospice programs reaffirm the inherent dignity and worth of each individual while underscoring our reverence for human life.

In recent years, the public and private sectors have forged a unique partnership in the development of hospice programs and services for terminally ill individuals and their families. Today, a permanent Medicare hospice benefit and the implementation of a hospice benefit by several State Medicaid programs enable more terminally ill Americans to obtain needed care. Many private insurance companies and employers also provide hospice benefits in health care coverage packages. These programs are helping to ensure that hospice care remains a positive, viable alternative for terminally ill individuals and their loved ones.

In acknowledgement of the value of hospice programs and in grateful recognition of the thousands of health care professionals and volunteers who care for the terminally ill, the Congress, by Senate Joint Resolution 78, has designated the months of November 1989 and 1990 as "National Hospice Month" and has authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation in observance of these months.

Now, Therefore, I, George Bush, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim the months of November 1989 and 1990 as National Hospice Month. I urge all government agencies, hospice organizations, health care providers, and the people of the United States to observe these months with appropriate programs and activities designed to encourage recognition of and support for hospice care as a humane response to the needs of the terminally ill and as a viable component of our Nation's health care system.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this seventh day of November, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-nine, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and fourteenth.

GEORGE BUSH