[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 64 (Monday, May 10, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5072-S5073]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         THE AMERICAN LUNG ASSOCIATION--A CENTURY OF EXCELLENCE

  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, I welcome this opportunity to pay tribute 
to the American Lung Association as it prepares to celebrate its 
centennial anniversary on May 22. It is a remarkable milestone and the 
leaders and members

[[Page S5073]]

of this impressive organization, past and present, deserve great credit 
for their continuing successful commitment to fight lung disease for 
the past 100 years. From its inception as a community-based 
organization formed to eradicate tuberculosis to its current 
initiatives to reduce smoking, improve environmental health, reduce 
asthma incidence, and support research on preventing and treating lung 
disease, the Association has been an extraordinary leader in public 
education and public advocacy.
  The American Lung Association early mission was to combat the growing 
public health threat of tuberculosis a century ago. Even in 1904, the 
association had the creativity and visionary thinking to develop the 
nation's first health campaign to deal with this threat. The 
association developed new ways to diagnose and treat the disease and 
prevent its spread. Through public outreach efforts, it brought the 
best available technology to communities throughout the United States. 
In fact, the association funded the research that led to the discovery 
of isoniazid in 1952, which was the first drug for children with the 
disease and is still widely used today. The American Lung Association 
has long had an indispensable role in controlling the spread of 
tuberculosis and preventing epidemics of this disease. The Nation is 
very grateful for its immense contributions to public health.
  In its long and distinguished history, the association has risen to 
the challenge of many other health threats. In 1960, the board of 
directors issued a policy statement warning that ``Cigarette smoking is 
a major cause of lung cancer.'' The statement came 4 years before the 
landmark ``Surgeon General's Report on Smoking and Health,'' and the 
association became an effective leader in the battle we are still 
waging to this day against smoking. The association had the skill and 
foresight to develop needed smoking cessation programs and youth 
smoking prevention programs, and it did so decades before the public 
and the Federal Government called for them.
  An additional high priority of the association today is reducing the 
heavy burden of asthma in our society. Based on its outstanding 
successes with tuberculosis and smoking cessation, I have no doubt that 
it will lead the way to make our environments safer for asthma 
sufferers.
  On this special anniversary, I commend the American Lung Association 
for a century of leadership in improving the health of millions of 
Americans every year, and I wish them great success in their important 
mission in the years ahead.
   Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, it is my tremendous honor to rise today to 
recognize a very special birthday. Over the last 100 years, the 
American Lung Association has distinguished itself in numerous and 
meaningful ways. It has made significant contributions to modern health 
science and has been a force for successful political action. Most 
importantly, the American Lung Association is responsible for saving 
millions of lives through its constant and dedicated efforts to educate 
the public to the dangers of lung disease and to promote both 
preventive care and treatment for this terrible illness.
   The American Lung Association has been especially active over the 
past 40 years in bringing the health concerns of smoking to the 
national policy agenda and aggressively promoting the principles behind 
the Clean Air Act in relation to pollution's effect on the human body 
and to those individuals with existing lung illnesses.
   Its work in the field of asthma is equally exemplary. The American 
Lung Association has pioneered research efforts to determine the causes 
and treatment of childhood and adult asthma, calling for needed funding 
and government support. It has also spearheaded efforts to teach 
children with asthma how to better manage their disease so as to reduce 
complications, hospitalizations, and in some cases, deaths.
   With the knowledge that lung disease is responsible for one in seven 
deaths annually, there is no doubt of the critical nature of the 
efforts of the American Lung Association. It is certainly appropriate 
that this body recognize this dedicated organization for a century of 
remarkable efforts to improve the health and lives of all Americans, 
and wish its members many more years of continued success. When they 
succeed, we all do indeed breathe easier.
  Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, I congratulate the American Lung 
Association, ALA, on its 100th anniversary. Since its inception in 
1904, as the National Association for the Study and Prevention of 
Tuberculosis, the American Lung Association has served as a champion 
for those affected by lung disease.
  Lung disease is America's number three killer, responsible for one in 
seven deaths. Every year, close to 342,000 Americans die of lung 
diseases. However, lung disease is not only a killer, most lung disease 
is chronic. More than 35 million Americans are now living with chronic 
lung disease. I applaud ALA's commitment to fighting lung disease in 
all its forms, with special emphasis on asthma, tobacco control and 
environmental health.
  One of the main focuses of the American Lung Association is the 
reduction of tobacco use in order to combat lung disease. Smoking is 
responsible for 90 percent of all cancer deaths. Four years before the 
publication of the landmark 1964 Surgeon General's Report on Smoking 
and Health the American Lung Association established the link between 
cigarette smoking and lung cancer.
  As the author of the law banning smoking on airplanes and in all 
Federal buildings I am tirelessly committed to protecting individuals 
from deadly secondhand smoke and developing regulations to protect 
children from the dangers of tobacco use. I am proud to call ALA my 
partner in this effort.
  In addition to the outstanding progress ALA has achieved in its anti-
tobacco work the association is also recognized as a leader in the 
clean air movement. Americans have ALA to thank for developing the 
crucial health basis for the Nation's clear air standards that led to 
passage and implementation of the landmark 1970 Clean Air Act and the 
Clean Air Act Amendments of 1977 and 1990.
  I commend the ALA for its outstanding achievements over the past 
century, and I offer by best wishes for a successful future.

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