[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Con. Res. 119 Engrossed in Senate (ES)]

  2d Session
S. CON. RES. 119

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                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Whereas the American Red Cross is a nonprofit humanitarian organization of 
        32,000 paid staff, 1,300,000 volunteers, and 4,300,000 blood donors 
        which considers its role in the provision of blood services to be a 
        public trust;
Whereas the American Red Cross Blood Services began by collecting and 
        distributing blood to help save the lives of soldiers on the 
        battlefields of World War II, and has evolved to become a leader in the 
        healthcare industry;
Whereas following World War II the American Red Cross created the first national 
        civilian blood program, opening its first blood center in 1948;
Whereas through the generosity of over 4,300,000 voluntary blood donors the 
        American Red Cross is able to provide half the Nation's blood supply, 
        and everyday, in communities throughout this country, many thousands of 
        people receive lifesaving blood in the 3,000 hospitals served by the 38 
        American Red Cross Blood Regions;
Whereas in May 1991, the American Red Cross announced its ambitious 
        ``Transformation'' program, a 7-year, $287,000,000 comprehensive 
        modernization of every aspect of the American Red Cross Blood Services 
        blood collection, testing, processing, and distribution systems;
Whereas one of the most massive undertakings of Transformation was the 
        Manufacturing and Computer Standardization (MACS) initiative which 
        integrated 28 different computer systems into a single, national system 
        linking American Red Cross Blood Regions nationwide to the world's 
        largest blood information database for transfusion medicine research, 
        and standardized manufacturing processes;
Whereas under Transformation the more than 50 individual, nonstandardized 
        laboratories operated by local American Red Cross Blood Regions were 
        replaced by 8 state-of-the-art National Testing Laboratories, which 
        effectively implement the latest medical technology to perform the 
        testing of approximately 6,000,000 units of blood annually, serving both 
        American Red Cross blood centers and several non-American Red Cross 
        blood centers as well, and are located in Atlanta, Georgia; Charlotte, 
        North Carolina; Dedham, Massachusetts; Detroit, Michigan; Philadelphia, 
        Pennsylvania; Portland, Oregon; St. Louis, Missouri; and St. Paul, 
        Minnesota;
Whereas the American Red Cross Blood Services has created a Quality Assurance 
        program recognized throughout the world as a leader in assuring quality 
        in the manufacture of blood products;
Whereas the creation of the Charles Drew Biomedical Institute has allowed the 
        American Red Cross to provide training and other educational resources 
        to American Red Cross Blood Services' personnel through ``One Touch'' 
        which is an interactive, distance learning system that allows 
        instructors to train personnel across the country from the institute's 
        location at American Red Cross Biomedical Headquarters in Rosslyn, 
        Virginia;
Whereas Transformation saw the development of a centrally managed blood 
        inventory system to ensure the consistent availability of blood and 
        blood components in every American Red Cross Blood Services Region 
        throughout the country, and the creation of the new centralized 
        organizational structure within American Red Cross Blood Services;
Whereas the American Red Cross Jerome H. Holland Laboratory in Rockville, 
        Maryland, is the world's premiere blood research facility, consistently 
        contributing to the progress of biomedical science, especially 
        transfusion safety and new blood products, and shares its expertise with 
        a number of countries around the world;
Whereas the American Red Cross manages an almost $30,000,000 investment in 
        research and development, which includes $8,000,000 in Federal research 
        grants, and is committed to working with others in the biotechnology 
        field to ensure that this pioneering research is translated into 
        lifesaving products available for patient use as quickly as possible;
Whereas the American Red Cross is investigating and implementing the newest 
        technologies to ensure blood safety, including Genome Amplification 
        Technology to test for the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and for 
        hepatitis C virus (HCV), solvent detergent treated fresh frozen plasma, 
        virus inactivated plasma for transfusion, use of iodine in plasma 
        filtration, and inactivation of viruses in cellular products (such as 
        red blood cells) through a light-activated dye called 491;
Whereas the American Red Cross is in the constant process of modernization and 
        improvement and at the forefront of new product development, and is 
        prepared to enter the 21st century as a cutting-edge organization 
        providing safe, high quality blood and blood products to the hundreds of 
        thousands of patients in need;
Whereas Congress and the American Red Cross join in celebrating the phenomenal 
        success in the reduction of HIV infection through the use of blood and 
        blood products as evidenced by the fact that in 1991 an American's risk 
        of HIV transmission through a blood transfusion was 1 in 220,000 and 
        today the risk is 1 in 676,000, nearly nonexistent; and
Whereas Congress and the American Red Cross encourage healthy Americans to 
        donate blood by calling the American Red Cross: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) joins with the American Red Cross in celebration of the 
        50th anniversary of American Red Cross Blood Services and the 
        impact of their efforts on modern medicine; and
            (2) looks forward to the tremendous possibilities and 
        potential for discovery and innovation as the American Red 
        Cross Blood Services enters the next 50 years of providing the 
        Nation with a safe blood supply.

            Passed the Senate October 9 (legislative day, October 2), 
      1998.

            Attest:

                                                             Secretary.
105th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                            S. CON. RES. 119

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

   Recognizing the 50th anniversary of the American Red Cross Blood 
                               Services.