Shalala Decries Domestic Abuse, Calls It Terrorism

Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala decried domestic violence Friday as “terrorism in the home” and called upon Americans to wake up to the problem.

She promised that the Clinton Administration would do its part, including establishing a national telephone hot line for victims of domestic abuse that is awaiting congressional approval.

Four million women each year “are terrorized by the men they know,” Shalala said at a conference on family violence organized by the American Medical Assn.

From 20% to 30% of the injuries that send women to emergency rooms are inflicted by their partners, she said. Shalala said there has been a “conspiracy of silence” about the problem, which afflicts poor, middle-class and wealthy families alike.

Dr. Robert E. McAfee, president-elect of the AMA, said that too often physicians “focus on the twisted ankle, the broken rib” and accept without questioning a patient’s claim that she fell down the stairs. Less than 15% of the time do they put their finger on what actually happened, he said.