[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 596 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 596

 Designating September 2016 as ``Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Month''.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 29, 2016

    Mr. Coons (for himself, Mr. Kirk, and Mr. Murphy) submitted the 
   following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the 
                               Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Designating September 2016 as ``Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Month''.

Whereas pulmonary fibrosis is a debilitating and ultimately fatal condition that 
        causes progressive scarring in the lungs and generally has no known 
        definitive cause;
Whereas as many as 200,000 individuals in the United States are known to suffer 
        from pulmonary fibrosis, the majority of whom are between the ages of 50 
        and 75;
Whereas the average survival rate for the idiopathic form of pulmonary fibrosis 
        is just 2.8 years and up to 80 percent of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis 
        patients die within 5 years of diagnosis;
Whereas pulmonary fibrosis takes the lives of 40,000 individuals in the United 
        States each year, approximately 1 death every 13 minutes;
Whereas many patients with pulmonary fibrosis are misdiagnosed for 1 year or 
        longer after the patients are presenting with pulmonary fibrosis 
        symptoms;
Whereas as of September 2016, there are no biomarkers for screening and testing 
        for pulmonary fibrosis;
Whereas a cure or drug that is effective for all pulmonary fibrosis patients 
        that would extend life or universally improve symptoms does not exist;
Whereas the symptoms of pulmonary fibrosis vary from person to person and 
        include shortness of breath, a dry cough, fatigue, weight loss, and 
        aching muscles and joints;
Whereas volunteers, researchers, caregivers, and medical professionals are 
        working to improve the quality of life for individuals with pulmonary 
        fibrosis and the families of those individuals; and
Whereas developing more effective treatments for pulmonary fibrosis and 
        providing access to quality care to individuals with pulmonary fibrosis 
        requires increased research, education, and community support services: 
        Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) designates September 2016 as ``Pulmonary Fibrosis 
        Awareness Month'';
            (2) supports the goals and ideals of Pulmonary Fibrosis 
        Awareness Month;
            (3) continues to support more robust and accelerated 
        research to develop more effective treatments for pulmonary 
        fibrosis and to ultimately find a cure for the disease;
            (4) recognizes the courage and contributions of individuals 
        with pulmonary fibrosis who participate in vital clinical 
        trials to advance the knowledge of the disease; and
            (5) commends the dedication of organizations, volunteers, 
        researchers, and millions of individuals in the United States 
        and abroad working to improve the quality of life for 
        individuals with pulmonary fibrosis and the families of those 
        individuals.
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