[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 847 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 847

   To amend the Public Health Service Act to establish a program of 
providing information and education to the public on the prevention and 
                     treatment of eating disorders.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 26, 1997

  Mrs. Lowey (for herself and Mrs. Morella) introduced the following 
         bill; which was referred to the Committee on Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Public Health Service Act to establish a program of 
providing information and education to the public on the prevention and 
                     treatment of eating disorders.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Eating Disorders Information and 
Education Act of 1997''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) Eating disorders include anorexia nervosa, bulimia 
        nervosa, and binge eating disorder, as well as eating disorders 
        not otherwise defined.
            (2) Anorexia nervosa and bulimia each can result in death, 
        cardiac impairments, depression, substance abuse, osteoporosis, 
        infertility, amenorrhea, anemia, and other medical conditions.
            (3) Medical authorities are uncertain to what extent eating 
        disorders are caused by physiological factors, by psychosocial 
        factors, or by both.
            (4) Such disorders primarily affect women. As many as 7 
        percent of women may be experiencing eating disorders, and the 
        rate of new cases is increasing. As many as 80 percent of women 
        may during their lifetimes display symptoms of eating 
        disorders.
            (5) There are effective treatments for some eating 
        disorders.

SEC. 3. PUBLIC INFORMATION AND EDUCATION ON EATING DISORDERS.

    Subpart 3 of part B of title V of the Public Health Service Act (42 
U.S.C. 290bb-31 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following 
section:

                           ``eating disorders

    ``Sec. 520C. (a) Information and Education.--The Secretary, acting 
through the Director of the Center for Mental Health Services, shall 
carry out a program to provide information and education to the public 
on the prevention and treatment of eating disorders.
    ``(b) Toll-Free Telephone Communications.--In carrying out 
subsection (a), the Secretary shall provide for the operation of toll-
free telephone communications to provide information to the public on 
eating disorders, including referrals for services for the prevention 
and treatment of such disorders. Such communications shall be available 
on a 24-hour, 7-day basis.
    ``(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--For the purpose of carrying 
out this section, there are authorized to be appropriated $2,000,000 
for fiscal year 1998, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 
fiscal years 1999 and 2000.''.
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