[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 21 (Thursday, March 5, 1998)]
[House]
[Page H856]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    THE BIRTH DEFECTS PREVENTION ACT

  (Mr. BLUNT asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Speaker, in spite of the fact that the United States 
has the most advanced health care system in the world, 3 percent of our 
children are born with birth defects. Approximately 150,000 babies are 
born each year in this country with a serious birth defect.
  Although some birth defects are minor and have no permanent 
consequences, others cause permanent disability, which necessitates 
constant medical care, special education and other services that cost 
victims and their families countless tears and thousands of dollars 
each year. All too often serious birth defects result in death. In 
fact, birth defects are the leading cause of infant death in America 
today.
  Next week, the House will consider legislation that could 
dramatically reduce the incidence of birth defects in America. The 
Birth Defects Prevention Act, sponsored by Senator Kit Bond and passed 
by the Senate last year, would direct the Centers for Disease Control 
to serve as the national clearinghouse for the collection and storage 
of data on birth defects, help states establish birth defect 
surveillance programs or improve existing ones, and make grants 
available to the public and nonprofit organizations to develop and 
implement birth defect prevention strategies.

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