124 STAT. 4711 PROCLAMATION 8579—OCT. 6, 2010 guarantees that children are eligible for health coverage regardless of any pre-existing condition. This landmark law extends the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and requires basic dental and vision cov- erage for children under all health plans offered in the new health in- surance exchanges beginning in 2014. It also expands our health care workforce, including increasing the number of primary care providers who treat children; forbids insurance companies from dropping cov- erage if a child or family member gets sick; and helps ensure access to free preventive services. As we mark these successes and the begin- ning of a new chapter in American health care this year, we also cele- brate the 75th anniversary of the Social Security Act—including title V of this milestone legislation, which supports maternal and child health programs and services across the country. Parents also should not have to worry about whether the conditions in which their children grow and play are unsafe or unclean. Prenatal and early-life exposures to allergens and environmental contaminants may have detrimental lifelong effects. We must take action for our chil- dren’s and grandchildren’s sake, and we must work together to reduce risks from environmental exposure at home, school, and play areas. Through coordinated efforts like that of the President’s Task Force on Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks to Children, my Adminis- tration will continue to empower Federal interagency collaboration to help ensure healthy homes and communities exist for our children. Children are our most precious resource. They are our joy in the present, and our hope for the future. As loved ones and educators, mentors and friends, we must do everything in our power to protect the health and well-being of our Nation’s children and the promise of their futures. NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Con- stitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim Mon- day, October 4, 2010, as Child Health Day. I call upon families, child health professionals, faith-based and community organizations, and all levels of government to help ensure that America’s children stay safe and healthy. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this fourth day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand ten, and of the Inde- pendence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty- fifth. BARACK OBAMA Proclamation 8579 of October 6, 2010 National Physician Assistants Week, 2010 By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation In communities across our Nation, physician assistants serve tirelessly everyday to care for Americans and fulfill a critical function in our health care system. They provide important medical attention and
