[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 75 (Tuesday, May 20, 2003)]
[House]
[Page H4336]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           UTERINE FIBROID RESEARCH AND EDUCATION ACT OF 2003

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Cole). Under a previous order of the 
House, the gentlewoman from Ohio (Mrs. Jones) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, May is an important month for the 
Tubbs-Jones family. On May 15, my sister Barbara Walker celebrated her 
birthday. Happy birthday, Sis. I could not be there with you. 
Yesterday, my son, Mervyn Leroy Jones, II, celebrated his 20th 
birthday. Today, my father, Andrew Tubbs, celebrates his 83rd birthday. 
Happy birthday, Dad. I love you. And on Thursday, May 22, my dad will 
be named Senior of the Year by Cleveland's City Council. 
Congratulations, Dad. I love you.
  Now, let me switch to something else very quickly. I rise today to 
bring to the attention of the Congress an issue related to women's 
health that is misunderstood, underfunded, and devastating to the 
physical and sometimes mental health of women. The issue is uterine 
fibroids. On Mother's Day, we took time out to honor our mothers, our 
grandmothers, our aunts and sisters; yet we have done very little to 
provide research and to educate our health care professionals and other 
women about uterine fibroids. Uterine fibroid-related expenses 
accounted for over $2 billion in hospital costs. The National Institute 
of Health spent only $5 million on uterine fibroid research this year.
  Today, I introduced the Uterine Fibroid Research and Education Act of 
2003. One out of every four women in their 30s or 40s will seek medical 
care for uterine fibroids. Uterine fibroids are noncancerous growths in 
the uterus that cause abnormal bleeding, urinary frequency, pain in the 
back, legs and pelvis, infertility, and miscarriage. My legislation's 
number is H.R. 2157.
  This painful chronic condition disproportionately affects African 
American women, who are two to three times more likely to suffer from 
uterine fibroids than other women. Despite their prevalence, little is 
known about uterine fibroids and few good treatment options are 
available to women who suffer from them. More than 200,000 women will 
undergo a hysterectomy each year to treat uterine fibroids, which 
requires a 6-week recovery, has a 20 to 40 percent risk of 
complications, and means, in some instances, that a woman can no longer 
bear children.
  Other treatments for uterine fibroids have not undergone the rigorous 
testing that women expect. In fact, the Agency for Health Care Research 
and Quality, a Federal health agency, found a remarkable lack of high-
quality evidence supporting the effectiveness of most interventions for 
symptomatic fibroids. Women deserve better.
  This legislation, the Uterine Fibroid Research and Education Act of 
2003, commits the Federal Government to expanding and coordinating 
research on uterine fibroids at NIH. It authorizes a doubling of what 
is spent currently, authorizing $10 million for uterine fibroid 
research each year for 5 years. It provides education for health care 
providers so that they can educate themselves about the condition and 
do more to assist women with the condition. And, finally, it 
establishes a public education campaign for patients so that they have 
an opportunity to learn more about uterine fibroids.
  I ask all of my colleagues to support me in the passage of H.R. 2157.

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