[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 59 (Thursday, May 8, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4240-S4242]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. FEINSTEIN (for herself, Mr. Graham, Mrs. Boxer, Ms. 
        Snowe, Mr. Reid, Mr. Johnson, Ms. Moseley-Braun, Ms. Landrieu, 
        Mr. Harkin, Mr. D'Amato, Mr. Specter, Mrs. Murray, and Mr. 
        Mack):
  S. 726. A bill to allow postal patrons to contribute to funding for 
breast cancer research through the voluntary

[[Page S4241]]

purchase of certain specially issued United States postage stamps; to 
the Committee on Governmental Affairs.


                  the breast cancer research stamp act

 Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I, along with Senators Boxer, 
Graham, Snowe, Moseley-Braun, Landrieu, Harkin, Specter, D'Amato, Mack, 
Johnson, Reid, and Murray would like to introduce the Breast Cancer 
Research Stamp Act.
  In a time of shrinking budgets and resources for breast cancer 
research, this legislation would provide an innovative way to provide 
additional funding for breast cancer research.
  This bill would: authorize the U.S. Postal Service to issue an 
optional special first class stamp to be priced at 1 cent above the 
cost of normal first-class postage; earmark a penny of every stamp for 
breast cancer research; provide administrative costs from the revenues 
for post office expenses; allow 100 percent of the proceeds from the 
stamp to fund HHS breast cancer research projects; clarify current law, 
in that any similar stamp would require an act of Congress to be issued 
in the future.
  If only 10 percent of all first class mail used this optional 33 cent 
stamp, $60 million could be raised for breast cancer research annually.
  There is wide support for this legislation. Congressman Fazio, along 
with over 100 cosponsors have already introduced the companion bill 
(H.R. 407) in the House.
  The breast cancer epidemic has been called this Nation's best kept 
secret. There are 2.6 million women in America today with breast 
cancer, one million of whom have yet to be diagnosed with the disease.
  In 1996, an estimated 184,000 were diagnosed with breast cancer. It 
is the number one killer of women ages 40 to 44 and the leading cause 
of cancer death in women ages 15 to 54, claiming a woman's life every 
12 minutes in this country (source: National Breast Cancer Coalition).
  For California, 17,100 women were diagnosed with breast cancer and 
4,100 women will die from the disease (source: American Cancer Society 
cancer facts and figures, 1996).
  In addition to the cost of women's lives, the annual cost of 
treatment of breast cancer in the United States is approximately $10 
billion.
  Over the last 25 years, the National Institutes of Health has spent 
over $31.5 billion on cancer research--$2 billion of that on breast 
cancer. In the last 6 years alone, appropriations for breast cancer 
research have risen from $90 million in 1990 to $600 million today. 
That's the good news.
  But, the bad news is that the national commitment to cancer research 
overall has been hamstrung since 1980. Currently, NIH is able to fund 
only 23 percent of applications received by all the institutes. For the 
Cancer Institute, only 23 percent can be funded--a significant drop 
from the 60 percent of applications funded in the 1970's.
  Most alarming is the rapidly diminishing grant funding available for 
new researcher applicants.
  In real numbers, the National Cancer Institute will fund 
approximately 3,600 research projects, of which about 1,000 are new, 
previously unfunded activities. For investigator-initiated research, 
only 600 out of 1,900 research projects will be new.
  The United States is privileged to have some of the most talented 
scientists and many of the leading cancer research centers in the world 
such as UCLA, UC San Francisco, Memorial Sloan-Kettering, and the M.D. 
Anderson.
  This lack of increase in funding is starving some of the most 
important research, because scientists will have to look elsewhere for 
their livelihood.
  The U.S. must increase the research funds if these scientists and 
institutions are to continue to contribute their vast talents to the 
war on cancer and finding a cure.
  What is clear is that there is a direct correlation between increase 
in research funding and the likelihood of finding a cure.
  Cancer mortality has declined by 15 percent from 1950 to 1992 due to 
increases in cancer research funding. In fact, federally-funded cancer 
research has yielded vast amounts of knowledge about the disease--
information which is guiding our efforts to improve treatment and 
search for a cure. We have more knowledge and improvements in 
prevention through: identification of a ``cancer gene'', use of 
mammographies, clinical exams, and encouragement of self breast exams. 
Yet there is still no cure.
  The Bay Area has one of the highest rates of breast cancer incidence 
and mortality in the world. According to data given to my staff by the 
Northern California Cancer Center, Bay Area white women have the 
highest reported breast cancer rate in the world, 104 per 100,000 
population. Bay Area African-American women have the fourth highest 
reported rate in the world at 82 per 100,000 (source: Northern 
California Cancer Center).
  I want to recognize Dr. Balazs (Ernie) Bodai who suggested this 
innovative funding approach. Dr. Bodai is the Chief of the Surgery 
Department at the Kaiser Permanente Medical Group in Sacramento, 
California. He is the founder of Cure Cancer Now, which is a nonprofit 
organization committed to developing a funding source for breast cancer 
research.
  This legislation is supported by the American Cancer Society, 
American Medical Association, American Hospital Association, 
Association of Operating Room Nurses, California Health Collaborative 
Foundations, YWCA-Encore Plus, the Sacramento City Council and Mayor 
Joe Serna, Siskiyou County Board of Supervisors, Sutter County Board of 
Supervisors, Nevada County Board of Supervisors, Yuba City Council, 
California State Senator Diane Watson and California State 
Assemblywoman Dede Alpert as well as the Public Employees Union, San 
Joaquin Public Employees Association, and Sutter and Yuba County 
Employees Association and many more on the attached list.
  Given the intense competition for Federal research funds in a climate 
of shrinking budgets, the Breast Cancer Research Stamp Act would allow 
anyone who uses the postal service to contribute in finding a cure for 
the breast cancer epidemic.
  In a sense, this particular proposal is a pilot. I recognize that the 
postal service may oppose this since it hasn't been done before. I also 
recognize that in a day of diminishing federal resources, this 
innovation is an idea whose time has come.
  It will make money for the post office and for breast cancer 
research. No one is forced to buy it, but women's organizations may 
even wish to sell the stamps in a fundraising effort.
  The administrative costs can be handled with the 1 cent added on to 
the cost of a first class stamp and conservatively it can make from $60 
million per year for breast cancer research.
  We need to find a cure for breast cancer and I believe the Breast 
Cancer Research Stamp Act is an innovative response to the hidden 
epidemic among women. I urge my colleagues to support this important 
legislation.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that additional material be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                 S. 726

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECITON 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Breast-Cancer Research Stamp 
     Act''.

     SEC. 2. SPECIAL POSTAGE STAMPS.

       (a) In General.--In order to afford the public a convenient 
     way to contribute to funding for breast-cancer research, the 
     United States Postal Service shall establish a special rate 
     of postage for first-class mail under this section.
       (b) Higher Rate.--The rate of postage established under 
     this section--
       (1) shall be 1 cent higher than the rate that would 
     otherwise apply;
       (2) may be established without regard to any procedures 
     under chapter 36 of title 39, United States Code, and 
     notwithstanding any other provision of law; and
       (3) shall be offered as an alternative to the rate that 
     would otherwise apply.
       The use of the rate of postage established under this 
     section shall be voluntary on the part of postal patrons.
       (c) Use of Funds.--
       (1) In general.--
       (A) Payments.--The amounts attributable to the 1-cent 
     differential established under this Act shall be paid by the 
     United States Postal Service to the Department of Health and 
     Human Services.
       (B) Use.--Amounts paid under subparagraph (A) shall be used 
     for breast-cancer research and related activities to carry 
     out the purposes of this Act.

[[Page S4242]]

       (C) Frequency of payments.--Payments under subparagraph (A) 
     shall be paid to the Department of Health and Human Services 
     no less than twice in each calendar year.
       (2) Amounts attributable to the 1-cent differential.--For 
     purposes of this subsection, the term ``amounts attributable 
     to the 1-cent differential established under this Act'' 
     means, as determined by the United States Postal Service 
     under regulations that it shall prescribe--
       (A) the total amount of revenues received by the United 
     States Postal Service that it would not have received but for 
     the enactment of this Act, reduced by
       (B) an amount sufficient to cover reasonable administrative 
     and other costs of the United States Postal Service 
     attributable to carrying out this Act.
       (d) Special Postage Stamps.--The United States Postal 
     Service may provide for the design and sale of special 
     postage stamps to carry out this Act.
       (c) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of the Congress 
     that--
       (1) nothing in this Act should directly or indirectly cause 
     a net decrease in total funds received by the Department of 
     Health and Human Services or any other agency or 
     instrumentality of the Government (or any component or other 
     aspect thereof) below the level that would otherwise have 
     been anticipated absent this Act; and
       (2) nothing in this Act should affect regular first-class 
     rates or any other regular rate of postage.

     SEC. 3. ANNUAL REPORTS.

       The Postmaster General shall include in each annual report 
     rendered under section 2402 of title 39, United States Code, 
     information concerning the operation of this Act.
                                  ____


                          Original Cosponsors

       Tony Hall (OH)--original.
       Charles Norwood (GA)--original.
       Lynn Woolsey (CA)--original.
       George Brown (CA).
       Tom Barrett (WI).
       Carrie Meek (FL).
       Nancy Pelosi (CA).
       Bernie Sanders (VT).
       Robert Matsui (CA).
       Corrine Brown (FL).
       Eni Faleomavaega (AS).
       Barney Frank (MA).
       Tom Lantos (CA).
       Gene Green (TX).
       Lynn Rivers (MI).
       Sheila Jackson-Lee (TX).
       Gary Condit (CA).
       Jose Serrano (NY).
       Zoe Lofgren (CA).
       Sam Farr (CA).
       Carolyn Maloney (NY).
       Bob Filner (CA).
       Connie Morella (MD).
       Martin Frost (TX).
       Mike McNulty (NY).
       Loretta Sanchez (CA).
       Tom Coburn (OK).
       John Dingell (MI).
       Mel Watt (NC).
       Sherrod Brown (OH).
       Pete Stark (CA).
       Anna Eshoo (CA).
       John Olver (MA).
       Paul McHale (PA).
       Susan Molinari (NY).
       Eleanor Holmes-Norton (DC).
       Gary Ackerman (NY).
       Jerry Lewis (CA).
       Louise Slaughter (NY).
       Frank Lobiando (NJ).
       Kay Granger (TX).
       Sam Gejdenson (CT).
       Henry Gonzalez (TX).
       Floyd Flake (NY).
       Danny K. Davis (IL).
       Elizabeth Furse (OR).
       Eddie Bernice Johnson (TX).
       Major Owens (NY).
       William Jefferson (LA).
       Thomas Foglietta (PA).
       Ed Pastor (AZ).
       John Ensign (NV).
       John Tierney (MA).
       Ron Packard (CA).
       Ellen Tauscher (CA).
       Rosa DeLauro (CT).
       Brian Bilbray (CA).
       Barbara Kennelly (CT).
       Scott Klug (WI).
       James McGovern (MA).
       John Conyers (MI).
       Carolyn Kilpatrick (MI).
       J.D. Hayworth (AZ).
       Gerald Kleczka (WI).
       Robert Wexler (FL).
       Richard Neal (MA).
       Sue Kelly (NY).
       John Doolittle (CA).
       George Miller (CA).
       Donna Christian-Green (Virgin Islands).
       David Camp (MI).
       Martin Meehan (MA).
       Carlos Romero-Barcello (PR).
       David Minge (MN).
       Sonny Callahan (AL).
       Peter Deutsch (FL).
       John Baldacci (ME).
       Harold Ford (TN).
       Cynthia McKinney (GA).
       Charlie Rangel (NY).
       Nick Lampson (TX).
       Richard Burr (NC).
       Jim McDermott (WA).
       Earl Hilliard (AL).
       David Bonior (MI).
       Frank Pallone (NJ).
       88 as of 4/23/97.
                                  ____


                         Supporters of H.R. 407

       American Association of Health Education.
       American Association of Critical-Care Nurses.
       American Cancer Society--National.
       American College of Surgeons.
       American Medical Association.
       American Medical Student Association.
       American Society of Anesthesiologists.
       American Society of Clinical Pathologists.
       American Society of Internal Medicine.
       American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons.
       Association of Operating Room Nurses.
       California Health Collaboration Foundations.
       California Medical Association.
       California Nurses Association.
       California Schools Employees Association.
       California State.
       Committee for Freedom of Choice in Medicine, Inc.
       Emergency Nurses Association.
       Health Education Council.
       Kaiser Permanente--Sacramento.
       Louisiana Breast Cancer Task Force.
       Merced County Board of Supervisors.
       National Cancer Registrars Association.
       National Lymphedema Network.
       National Osteoporosis Foundation.
       Nevada County Board of Supervisors.
       ONE-California, organization of nurse leaders.
       Public Employees Union--Local One.
       Sacramento Area Mammography Society.
       Sacramento City Council.
       Sacramento-El Dorado Medical Society.
       San Joaquin Public Employees Association.
       Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors.
       Save Ourselves-Y-Me.
       Sonoma County Board of Supervisors.
       Sutter County Board of Supervisors.
       The Breast Cancer Fund.
       United Farm Workers of America AFL-CIO.
       Vital Options TeleSupport Cancer Network.
       WIN Against Breast Cancer.
       YWCA-ENCORE.
       Hadassah The Women's Zionist Organization of America, Inc.
       Foundation Health Corporation.
       American Association of Health Plans.
       American College of Osteopathic Surgeons.
       Association of Reproductive Health Professionals.
                                 ______