[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 48 (Tuesday, April 16, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H3437-H3438]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                THE RICKY RAY HEMOPHILIA RELIEF FUND ACT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Florida [Mr. Goss] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GOSS. Mr. Speaker, a majority of the House now agrees that we 
should provide compassionate assistance to the 8,000 victims of 
hemophilia-associated aids. The Ricky Ray Hemophilia Relief Fund Act--
which establishes a compensation program for the victims of this 
tragedy--now carries 219 bi-partisan cosponsors. I introduced the Ricky 
Ray Bill--which is named for a constituent who was 15 when he died of 
hemophilia-associated Aids in 1992. We started with two dozen sponsors.
  But each week for the past year the support for this measure has 
grown thanks to the awesome grassroots participation of the victims of 
hemophilia-

[[Page H3438]]

associated Aids, their families and their friends. These folks have put 
aside their differences, rallied together and learned to use the 
legislative process to further their goals. I am extremely proud of 
their work and pledge to redouble my efforts to make sure this bill 
gets heard during this Congress.
  Hemophilia is an inherited blood-clotting disorder causing serious 
internal bleeding episodes that, if left untreated, can lead to 
disfigurement and even death. To help control and prevent such 
bleeding, hemophiliacs rely on blood-products, which are manufactured 
and sold by pharmaceutical companies. Because these products are made 
from the pooled blood of thousands of people, the potential for 
infection with blood-borne disease among those who use them is very 
high, something that has been well-known for decades. In fact, since 
the 1970's, the hemophilia community has grappled with the serious 
consequences of hepatitis, a debilitating chronic illness. But in the 
early 1980's, a much more deadly villain struck, as nearly one-half of 
all people with hemophilia in the United States became infected with 
the virus that causes aids. Today they are dying at a rate of about one 
each day.
  Mr. Speaker, we have long argued that the Federal Government shares 
responsibility for this devastating situation, because it failed to 
respond to the early warning signs that Aids was transmissible by blood 
and blood products. During the early years of Aids, repeated 
opportunities to reduce the likelihood of contaminated blood entering 
the supply of blood products were missed.
  This conclusion was supported by a 2-year study, conducted by a 
distinguished panel at the institute of medicine. In a report entitled 
``HIV and the blood supply,'' the IOM panel concluded that the Federal 
agencies missed opportunities to protect the public health because they 
consistently chose the least aggressive response to the early warning 
signs. The report concluded that the system--which was charged with 
protecting the blood supply, ensuring the safety of manufactured blood 
products, and informing the public of risks--failed to deal with the 
relatively well-known problem of hepatitis and was therefore unprepared 
to confront the crisis of Aids. Mr. Speaker, the premise behind the 
Ricky Ray bill is that the Government has a unique responsibility for 
regulating the safety of blood products, based on a Federal blood 
policy and several major statutes that establish the regulatory 
framework for blood.
  Members should also understand that the legal system classifies blood 
products in a unique way. Even though they are commercially marketed 
and sold, blood products enjoy special status under the so-called 
``blood shield'' laws of every State, which protect against product 
liability lawsuits.
  Given these facts, we have concluded that Government has a unique 
obligation to assist the victims and so the Ricky Ray bill authorizes 
the creation of a trust fund, administered by the Attorney General, to 
provide $125,000 in assistance to each victim who meets strict 
eligibility criteria.
  The trust fund would sunset after 5 years, would be capped at $1 
billion and would be subject to funding through annual appropriations.
  Mr. Speaker, the United States has yet to set up an assistance 
program, even though more than 20 other nations have done so. Just last 
month the Government of Japan and five drug companies--including 
several American firms--agreed to provide the equivalent of $430,000 to 
each of the estimated 1,800 victims in Japan, with the government 
paying 44 percent and the companies paying 56 percent.
  It is time the United States took its share of responsibility for 
what happened to 8,000 American hemophiliacs during the 1980's. Please 
join the majority of bipartisan support of the Ricky Ray Hemophilia 
Relief Fund Act.

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