[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 145 (Friday, October 7, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: October 7, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
WAIVING POINTS OF ORDER AGAINST CONFERENCE REPORT ON S. 1569, MINORITY 
                     HEALTH IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 1994

  Mr. MOAKLEY. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I 
call up House Resolution 574 and ask for its immediate consideration.
  The Clerk read the resolution, as follows:

                              H. Res. 574

       Resolved, That upon adoption of this resolution it shall be 
     in order to consider the conference report to accompany the 
     bill (S. 1569) to amend the Public Health Service Act to 
     establish, reauthorize and revise provisions to improve the 
     health of individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds, and for 
     other purposes. All points of order against the conference 
     report and against its consideration are waived. The 
     conference report shall be considered as read.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Massachusetts [Mr. 
Moakley] is recognized for 1 hour.
  Mr. MOAKLEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the 
gentleman from Tennessee [Mr. Quillen], pending which I yield myself 
such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, 
all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only.
  (Mr. MOAKLEY asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. MOAKLEY. Mr. Speaker, House Resolution 574 provides for the 
consideration of the conference report on S. 1569, the conference 
report on the Minority Health Improvement Act of 1994.
  The rule waives all points of order against the conference report and 
against its consideration.
  The rule further provides that the conference report shall be 
considered as read.
  Mr. Speaker, the conference report on S. 1569, the bill for which the 
committee has recommended this rule, is crafted to strengthen Federal 
programs designed to improve the health status of minorities through 
the delivery of health care services, training of health professionals, 
and expanded research and data collection.
  This legislation includes an important provision which I drafted to 
address serious problems confronting women scientists employed at the 
National Institutes of Health.
  Several studies, hearings and task force investigations have been 
conducted concerning the employment climate at the NIH. In 1993, it was 
found that disparities and inequities existed for women scientists with 
regard to pay, tenure, mentoring, promotion and visibility. 
Underrepresentation of women scientists was found at the more senior 
levels of the Institutes: only 18 percent of the tenured women 
scientists at NIH were women, despite the fact that women make up 30 
percent of PhD's in the life sciences and medicine.
  In May of this year an EEOC report on employment conditions at NIH 
found that women scientists were leaving the NIH at a rate above their 
representation in the work force. And entry-level pay for women and 
minority scientists was lower than for entry-level white male 
scientists.
  Other problems with harassment, discrimination and a pervasive 
mistrust of the Institute's Equal Employment Opportunity office were 
also raised.
  I have met recently with senior staff at NIH, including the director. 
And I have been heartened by the Institute's response to many of these 
problems. I do not doubt their commitment to bring about deep and 
lasting changes in the culture of this large organization.
  Still, I believe it is important for the Congress to enact a 
legislative response to help support and speed up the process of 
equalizing opportunity for the women scientists at NIH. That is why I 
introduced a bill calling on the NIH to establish policies relating to 
employment of women scientists. These include defining the standard 
tenure process for all scientific fellows, and calling on the Director 
of NIH to establish a standard family, including maternity, leave 
policy throughout the organization. Special consideration should also 
be given to development of a policy on the recruitment of minority 
women into tenured posts. And the NIH would be directed to require 
significant participation of women scientists in intramural and 
extramural conferences, workshops, congresses and other events funded 
or sponsored by NIH. Finally, the legislation calls for a study to 
identify pay differences between women and men scientists, and this 
information would be open and available to all NIH scientists.
  For too long, women in the workplace have put up with substandard 
treatment and lower pay. It is time for this behavior to end at the 
Federal Government's premier medical scientific research establishment. 
I look forward to continuing to work with the NIH to improve conditions 
for women scientists.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support both the rule and the 
conference report.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. QUILLEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  (Mr. QUILLEN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. QUILLEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  (Mr. QUILLEN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. QUILLEN. Mr. Speaker, although I do not favor blanket waivers, I 
will not object to adoption of this rule. The House version of the 
Minority Health Improvement Act passed by voice vote earlier this year, 
and although there may be some controversy over the cost of the final 
measure and over some of the provisions, we can discuss these issues 
thoroughly during general debate and vote accordingly.
  Mr. Speaker, numerous bills come before the House during these last 
hectic hours of Congress, and we are not always given sufficient time 
to review the provisions of all legislation.

                             {time}   1650

  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to pay close attention to the 
debate on these final measures before casting their votes. Mr. Speaker, 
I urge adoption of the rule.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. MOAKLEY. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time. I 
yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on 
the resolution.
  The previous question was ordered.
  The resolution was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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