1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to health; appropriating money to the commissioner of health for a grant 
1.3 	to address hepatitis B in Asian populations.
1.4 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.5 	Section 1. APPROPRIATION; GRANT TO ADDRESS HEPATITIS B IN ASIAN 
1.6 	POPULATIONS.
 1.7 	$300,000 in fiscal year 2018 and $300,000 in fiscal year 2019 are appropriated from the 
1.8 	general fund to the commissioner of health for a grant to the Lao Assistance Center of 
1.9 	Minnesota, to address the disproportionate impact hepatitis B has on Asian populations in 
1.10 	the United States. Asian populations comprise less than five percent of the population and 
1.11 	ten percent of Asians have this very serious disease. The Lao Assistance Center of Minnesota 
1.12 	must use the grant funds to provide outreach and education to Asian immigrant and refugee 
1.13 	populations to stop the transmission of hepatitis B and achieve widespread screenings and 
1.14 	vaccinations to prevent and treat this deadly disease with the 90 percent-effective vaccine. 
1.15 	For guidance, the Lao Assistance Center shall review the anti-hepatitis B campaign materials 
1.16 	prepared by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Lao Assistance 
1.17 	Center shall distribute a portion of the grant funds to agencies serving Hmong, Vietnamese, 
1.18 	and Cambodian populations.