Inoculation against infectious diseases is a major factor in preventive health care. The Surgeon General of the United States has repeatedly called on our Nation to prevent the massive costs associated with health care through programs of health promotion and disease prevention. Many studies by the United States Public Health Service confirm the soundness of this directive. Inoculation with vaccines approved as safe and effective by the United States Food and Drug Administration, and readily available to the public, could save the lives of tens of thousands of American adults this year.
In recognition of the importance of adult immunization and the benefits that can flow from heightened public awareness, the Congress, by Public Law 99-528, has designated the week of October 26 through November 1, 1986, as "National Adult Immunization Awareness Week" and authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation in observance of this occasion.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, RONALD REAGAN, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim the week of October 26 through November 1, 1986, as National Adult Immunization Awareness Week. I call upon all government agencies and the people of the United States to observe this week with appropriate activities.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-fifth day of October, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-six, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and eleventh.
Proclamation 5562 of October 31, 1986
Crack/Cocaine Awareness Month, 1986
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
Cocaine poses a serious threat to our Nation. Long masquerading as glamorous and relatively harmless, cocaine has revealed its own deadly truth—cocaine is a killer. It can cause seizures, heart attacks, and strokes. It is indifferent in its destruction, striking regular users and initiates alike. The tragic deaths this past summer of two promising young athletes force us to recognize the terrible price this deadly drug exacts.
The tragedy of ruined lives and lost opportunities for personal growth and productivity cannot be adequately measured in dollars. It is too heavy a price for our citizens and for our Nation. As the consequences of cocaine use have been revealed, public awareness of the cocaine problem has increased. Yet many individuals continue to use cocaine, whether out of ignorance or unwillingness to believe its high risk. More than 22 million Americans have tried the drug at some time, and 5.8 million are current users.
Despite the best efforts by law enforcement officials, cocaine continues to come into our country at alarming levels, supplied by ruthless criminals
