[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 155 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 155

   Expressing the sense of Congress that a comprehensive program be 
 developed and implemented by the Federal Government to deal with the 
   Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immuno Deficiency 
                            Syndrome (AIDS).


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 27, 1993

 Mr. Burton of Indiana submitted the following concurrent resolution; 
       which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
   Expressing the sense of Congress that a comprehensive program be 
 developed and implemented by the Federal Government to deal with the 
   Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immuno Deficiency 
                            Syndrome (AIDS).

Whereas AIDS is currently a noncurable, fatal disease caused by HIV infection;
Whereas the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has, for five years, estimated 
        that as many as 1.5 million individuals in the United States are 
        infected with the HIV virus without their knowledge;
Whereas, as of September 11, 1993, the CDC has identified 329,216 individuals in 
        the United States who have either died from AIDS or currently have the 
        disease;
Whereas the CDC's new 1993 definition for AIDS could expand the total number of 
        recorded AIDS cases to nearly 350,000 by year's end;
Whereas the total number of recorded cases of AIDS has been nearly doubling 
        every two years since the discovery of the disease;
Whereas certain projections from these figures indicate that by the mid-1990s 
        the United States will have close to 1 million individuals who have 
        either died from AIDS or currently have the disease;
Whereas the outward symptoms of HIV infection can remain dormant for up to ten 
        years or more in an infected individual;
Whereas the lifetime cost of medically treating one HIV-infected individual is 
        approximately $100,000;
Whereas 75 percent of individuals with reported AIDS cases in other parts of the 
        world were infected with the HIV virus through heterosexual contact;
Whereas former United States Surgeon General Antonia C. Novello has stated that 
        the fastest growing percentage of new HIV infections in the United 
        States are resulting from heterosexual transmission;
Whereas a majority of American teenagers and college-age students are sexually 
        active;
Whereas the CDC in 1988 estimated that three out of every 1,000 college-age 
        students were infected with the HIV virus;
Whereas in Washington, DC alone a 300-percent increase in HIV infection among 
        teenagers between 1988 and 1990 has been documented;
Whereas medical experts are still unsure as to all the possible transmission 
        routes of the HIV virus;
Whereas HIV transmission between health care workers and patients during 
        invasive procedures has been documented;
Whereas AIDS is a preventable disease;
Whereas the HIV infection pandemic has been treated like a civil rights issue 
        rather than a public health issue;
Whereas the United States has the medical and financial resources available to 
        address the HIV infection pandemic; and
Whereas Congress has failed to address the HIV infection pandemic in a 
        comprehensive manner: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That it is the sense of Congress that a comprehensive program be 
developed and implemented by the Federal Government to deal with HIV 
and AIDS, and that this program should include the following aspects: 
routine HIV testing for individuals in the United States between 14 and 
55 years of age; contact tracing of HIV-infected individuals for 
possible transmission routes; government-assisted medical and 
psychological treatment; expanded medical research; civil rights 
protections for HIV-infected persons; public education campaigns about 
HIV's effects and modes of transmission; and penalties for individuals 
who knowingly spread the HIV virus.

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