Vice Presidential Pool Reports of May 23, 2022

VP pool report #1

Hi all,

I'll be your print pooler for Vice President Harris' appearance at Children's National Hospital here in D.C. this afternoon. Pool spotted Harris exiting the West Wing at 1:26pm. Motorcade is rolling from West Executive Avenue now.

Below is some background from the White House. Please reach out with any questions.

On Background from White House Official

Today, as part of Mental Health Awareness Month, Vice President Kamala Harris will highlight actions the Biden-Harris Administration is taking to address the mental health and wellness of health workers during a visit to Children's National Hospital in Washington, D.C. The Vice President will be joined by Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy for the announcement of the Surgeon General's Advisory Addressing Health Worker Burnout which lays out recommendations to address the factors underpinning burnout, improve health worker well-being, and strengthen the nation's public health infrastructure.

During the visit, the Vice President and the Surgeon General will deliver remarks and meet with healthcare providers and non-clinical staff to discuss their personal experiences with stress, anxiety, and mental health. They will be joined by Dr. Sasha Hamdani, a psychiatrist and content creator focused on mental health and wellness.

Throughout her career, Vice President Harris has made improving mental health and wellbeing a top priority. For example, as District Attorney, she helped launch the Center for Youth Wellness to support children who were dealing with the effects of trauma. As Attorney General, she launched a new bureau in the California Department of Justice to protect children from the kinds of trauma that create lasting mental effects.

The event Monday is part of the Administration's efforts to directly address and prioritize the health and well-being of healthcare providers and to transform how mental health is understood, accessed, and treated.

Biden-Harris Actions To Address Mental Health Crisis

• The Biden-Harris Administration has enacted several policies aimed at addressing the mental health and wellness of health workers, including:
  
  • The American Rescue Plan allocated over $100 million to reduce burnout and promote mental health and wellness among the health workforce.
  • HHS announced the release of over $200 million to train community health workers, which will help address staff shortages caused by burnout.
  • The Center for Disease Control has released a strategic plan for addressing health worker burnout, that includes improved data collection, mental health screenings, better training, and increased communication health worker burnout.
  • As part of his first State of the Union Address earlier this year, the Presidentannounced a strategy to address our national mental health crisis.

Background on Mental Health and Health Workers

• In recent years, health workers have experienced significant strain on their mental health and wellness as a result of their work combating the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the pandemic, more than 50% of public health workers have reported symptoms of at least one mental health condition.
• Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, health workers faced chronic workplace stress and were experiencing alarming levels of burnout. Research released in 2019 showed that up to 54% of nurses and physicians, and up to 60% of medical students and residents, were suffering from burnout.
• The poor mental health and well-being of health workers has led to staff shortages. For example, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, nursing homes have reported a loss of 15% of their total workforce after two years of the pandemic.

VP pool report #2

Motorcade arrived at the hospital at about 1:35pm. The pool entered in a different entrance than the Vice President. We're setting up to see Harris on one stop on a tour here.

VP pool report #3 - tour stop

We're on the 3rd floor of the hospital. Harris walked in with the Surgeon General. They visited with hospital workers for several minutes. Harris expressed gratitude for their work. She listened to experiences with burnout from the individual health workers, who thanked Harris for being there. She also greeted a young patient at the hospital and shared a moment with the young girl.

"You're why I do what I do," Harris told the young patient. She was excited when she learned that the young patient was the Vice President of her class.

"We're here because of what you guys do," Harris told the health workers. "Whatever we can do to lift up what you are doing."

Harris was also asked by a member of pool about her message to health workers. I'll send full quotes later and tweet video.

Masks are required in the hospital and Harris, Murthy and other hospital workers as well as press are all masked. It was at times difficult to understand the conversation.

Passing along from the White House on tour participants:

- Vice President Kamala Harris
- Vice Admiral Vivek Murthy, U.S. Surgeon General
- Dr. Sasha Hamdani, Psychiatrist & Digital Influencer
- Joy Budd, Registered Nurse, Children's National Hospital (tour guide)

Tour stop 1: The Research Desk

- Arlyn Ochoada Soriano, Registered Nurse, Children's National Hospital
- Dr. Hemant Sharma, MD, Children's National Hospital
- Dr. Alyson Yirinec, MD, Children's National Hospital
- Sharon Long, Emergency Room Technician, Children's National Hospital

VP pool report #5 - remarks about to begin

The program is beginning. Below is a list of speakers per the White House. I will send any color but you can watch the remarks live.

Remarks program:

Speaking order:
- Dr. Kurt Newman delivers remarks
- Dr. Sasha Hamdani delivers remarks
- Surgeon General Vivek Murthy delivers remarks
- Monique Cauley introduces VP
- Vice President Harris

VP pool report #6 — Harris begins remarks

Vice President Harris walked out and began remarks at 2:57pm.

Again, remarks are streaming live on the White House website https://www.whitehouse.gov/live/

VP pool report #7

Vice President Harris concluded her remarks at 3:08pm.

Just a note on the setup - remarks were outdoors on a pavilion on the third floor of the hospital. A small crowd of healthcare workers from the hospital watched the program.

Harris began her speech with a brief update on the baby formula shortage.

VP pool report #8 - motorcade rolling

We're headed back to the White House as of 3:15pm.

VP pool report #9 - back at WH

The motorcade arrived back at the White House at 3:25pm.

That's a wrap for me for today.