[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 39 (Thursday, March 22, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E430]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         RECOGNIZING THE IMPORTANCE OF COMBATTING TUBERCULOSIS

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                           HON. RICHARD BURR

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 20, 2001

  Mr. BURR of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I thank my good friend from 
Texas, Mr. Reyes, for introducing this important resolution.
  Dr. David Heymann of the World Health Organization once described 
tuberculosis as ``a disease once thought to be under control, which has 
returned with a vengeance to kill 1.5 million people a year.''
  TB was once the leading cause of death in the United States. In the 
1940s, scientists discovered drugs that would treat TB, and infection 
rates began to decline. Since that time, however, infection rates both 
in the U.S. and abroad have increased dramatically. Today, one third of 
the world's population has a latent TB infection. These increases have 
not gone unnoticed by international organizations. In fact, in 1993, 
the World Health Organization declared tuberculosis a global emergency.
  These increases in infection rates are due to a number of causes. 
Increases in HIV/AIDS infection rates are accelerating the spread of 
TB. In addition, poorly supervised or incomplete treatment threatens to 
make TB incurable as multidrug resistant TB cases rise.
  This problem is particularly serious in underdeveloped countries. A 
total of 22 countries are home to 80 percent of TB cases. Tuberculosis 
is particularly prevalent in India, Southeast Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, 
Russia, and parts of Latin America. The problem with TB poses a long 
term threat to global health. It is estimated that, if efforts to fight 
TB are not strengthened, 3 5 million people will die of the disease in 
the next 20 years.
  H. Res. 67 addresses many of these problems. The bill recognizes the 
importance of combating TB on a worldwide basis and acknowledges the 
severe impact that TB has on minority populations in the US. By passing 
the rosolution, we are recognizing the importance of substantially 
increasing US investment in international TB control. The bill also 
emphasizes the importance of efforts to eliminate TB in our own nation.
  It is my hope that by passing this resoluticin, Congress will make a 
commitment to fighting TB both on the national and global level.

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