[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 12 (Thursday, February 10, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E113]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           H. CON. RES. 247 IN SUPPORT OF NATIONAL DONOR DAY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CHARLES T. CANADY

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, February 10, 2000

  Mr. CANADY of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to support important 
legislation to encourage organ donation introduced by my friend and 
colleague from Florida, Karen Thurman. I've been pleased to work with 
Representative Thurman not only on this bill but also on legislation to 
provide Medicare transplant recipients with coverage for the 
immunosuppressive drugs they need.
  Each day more than 70,000 people await an organ transplant, and one 
more individual is added to their ranks every 16 minutes. Tragically, 
as a consequence of the shortage of donor organs, more than 10 people 
die every day. Despite recent advances in medicine, transplantation is 
still a crucial part of prolonging human life. Transplantation is not 
an experimental science; it is the standard method of treatment for 
many diseases, with success rates as high as 95 percent. Just one donor 
can help more than 50 people in need.
  For the past two years, a coalition of health organizations have 
joined together to designate a National Donor Day to highlight the need 
for organ donation. I am encouraged by the success of these first two 
National Donor Days. A total of almost 17,000 units of blood was 
raised; the names of 2,400 potential donors were added to the National 
Marrow Donor Program Registry; and tens of thousands of organ and 
tissue pledge cards were distributed. It is my hope that the third 
National Donor Day on February 12 will bring help to even more people 
in need. Representative Karen Thurman has drafted legislation to lend 
the support of Congress to National Donor Day's goals. It is a 
straight-forward, non-controversial bill that can truly help educate 
the American people about this crucial issue.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill and encourage all Americans 
to learn about the importance of organ, tissue, bone marrow, and blood 
donation.

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