[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 186 (Monday, November 20, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2226]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          GBS AWARENESS: IN MEMORY OF COOPER HENNING ARMSTRONG

                                 ______


                          HON. DAVID E. BONIOR

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, November 20, 1995

  Mr. BONIOR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to discuss a health care issue 
that is devastating to many American families. Group B Streptococcus, 
known as GBS, is a bacteria that is the No. 1 cause of life threatening 
infections in newborn babies. A good friend's sister and her husband 
tragically lost their 2 day old baby, Cooper Henning Armstrong, to GBS 
this past summer.
  Pregnant women are routinely screened for illnesses such as rubella 
and spina bifida; however, GBS infections are far more common. Despite 
being generally unknown to the public, an estimated 15 percent to 35 
percent of all healthy, adult women carry the GBS bacteria. Babies 
usually acquire GBS infections during childbirth when they come in 
direct contact with bacteria carried by the mother. Limited public 
knowledge and the lack of standardized testing procedures lead to the 
deaths of 2,000 babies a year. Some 12,000 infants will contract 
infections, many of whom will suffer permanent handicaps such as loss 
of sight and hearing, lung damage, learning disabilities, and mental 
retardation.
  Despite America's wealth, at least 26 nations have lower infant 
mortality rates than the United States. As the richest country in the 
world spending more on health care than any other nation, GBS illnesses 
and deaths are largely an unnecessary tragedy. In fact, the Centers for 
Disease Control [CDC] state that it is cost effective to routinely 
screen pregnant women for GBS. The American Academy of Pediatrics 
recommends that all pregnant women should be screened.
  GBS is preventable. However, since the incidence of GBS infections 
may vary widely and because of differing opinions in the medical 
community, there is virtually no education offered to prenatal 
patients. The CDC recommends that ``state or local health departments 
or groups of affiliated hospitals should consider establishing 
surveillance systems for neonatal GBS disease or reviewing data from 
existing systems to identify the current magnitude of disease and 
provide further information for evaluating the effectiveness of 
prevention measures.''
  I ask that my colleagues join with me in helping educate the public 
about this serious disease. We must encourage open communication 
between all health care providers and help coordinate the needed 
consensus to prevent GBS.
  Cooper Henning Armstrong's short life need not be in vain. His 
parents, Laura and Brad Lee Armstrong, have turned their grief into 
action so that others need not endure the pain they suffer. I admire 
their courage and I am inspired by their concern for all who wish to 
become parents. May their efforts, in memory of their son Cooper, be 
completed.

                          ____________________