Congressional Record, Volume 150 Issue 124 (Tuesday, October 5, 2004)

[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 124 (Tuesday, October 5, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H8073-H8074]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

PANCREATIC ISLET CELL TRANSPLANTATION ACT OF 2004

Mr. BARTON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
pass the bill (H.R. 3858) to amend the Public Health Service Act to
increase the supply of pancreatic islet cells for research, and to
provide for better coordination of Federal efforts and information on
islet cell transplantation.
The Clerk read as follows:

H.R. 3858

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Pancreatic Islet Cell
Transplantation Act of 2004''.

SEC. 2. ORGAN PROCUREMENT ORGANIZATION CERTIFICATION.

Section 371 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C.
273) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(c) Pancreata procured by an organ procurement
organization and used for islet cell transplantation or
research shall be counted for purposes of certification or
recertification under subsection (b).''.

SEC. 3. ANNUAL ASSESSMENT ON PANCREATIC ISLET CELL
TRANSPLANTATION.

Section 429 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C.
285c-3) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(d) In each annual report prepared by the Diabetes
Mellitus Interagency Coordinating Committee pursuant to
subsection (c), the Committee shall include an assessment of
the Federal activities and programs related to pancreatic
islet cell transplantation. Such assessment shall, at a
minimum, address the following:
``(1) The adequacy of Federal funding for taking advantage
of scientific opportunities relating to pancreatic islet cell
transplantation.
``(2) Current policies and regulations affecting the supply
of pancreata for islet cell transplantation.
``(3) The effect of xenotransplantation on advancing
pancreatic islet cell transplantation.
``(4) The effect of United Network for Organ Sharing
policies regarding pancreas retrieval and islet cell
transplantation.
``(5) The existing mechanisms to collect and coordinate
outcomes data from existing islet cell transplantation
trials.
``(6) Implementation of multiagency clinical investigations
of pancreatic islet cell transplantation.
``(7) Recommendations for such legislation and
administrative actions as the Committee considers appropriate
to increase the supply of pancreata available for islet cell
transplantation.''.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Texas (Mr. Barton) and the gentlewoman from Colorado (Ms. DeGette) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Barton).

General Leave

Mr. BARTON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend
their remarks on this legislation and to include extraneous material on
the bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Texas?
There was no objection.
Mr. BARTON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strongest possible support of H.R. 3858, the
Pancreatic Islet Cell Transplantation Act of 2004, introduced by the
gentleman from Washington (Mr. Nethercutt).
The Pancreatic Islet Cell Transplantation Act is short and simple. It
requires the pancreata donated for the purposes of islet cell
transplantation or research be counted for purposes of certification or
recertification of organ procurement organizations. Islet cell
transplantation is a procedure where islet cells are removed from a
donor pancreas and transferred into another person. Once implanted, the
beta cells in these islets begin to make and release insulin. H.R. 3858
will help to increase the number of pancreatic and other organ
donations, expanding the capabilities of pancreatic islet cell
research.
My family is very active in raising the awareness of diabetes. My
father, Larry Barton, died of complications from diabetes, and my wife,
Terry Barton, is executive director of the Tarrant County Chapter of
the American Diabetes Association. So I know personally how excited
people are about islet cell transplantation. It may help people with
certain type 1 diabetes live without daily injections of insulin, which
is very exciting. It is my hope that this legislation will help to
speed this research forward.
Mr. Speaker, I cannot urge in any stronger possible terms that all
Members support this legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. DeGETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, today this body can greatly improve the lives of more
than 1 million Americans who are affected by juvenile diabetes. The
Pancreatic Islet Cell Transplantation Act addresses a significant
problem by reducing the nonscientific barriers standing in the way of
this promising treatment.
Pancreatic islet cell transplantation is a procedure that infuses new
insulin-producing cells into an individual with juvenile diabetes. This
procedure has now been performed in over 300 people in this country.
The results are nothing short of miraculous. A majority of those islet
cell transplantation recipients no longer need to inject themselves
with insulin.
For a person with juvenile diabetes this change is life altering. It
means no more needles and no more worry. It means the question of what
to eat no longer requires calculation or cause for alarm. For those
patients islet cell transplantation means freedom, and ultimately islet
cell transplantation will be a cure for type 1 diabetes.
As we know too well, Mr. Speaker, living with diabetes is
challenging. Insulin is not a cure. It is only a means of managing the
disease, and it is more complicated by the difficulties of monitoring
glucose levels. Very serious complications like blindness and kidney
disease are not uncommon. In fact, a staggering number of patients with
juvenile, or type 1, diabetes suffer from some type of complication.
Every year 82,000 individuals lose their foot or leg to diabetes. Heart
disease is the leading cause of diabetes-related deaths. And diabetes
is the leading cause of new blindness in people 20 to 74 years old.
This bill, which I was proud to introduce with the gentleman from
Washington (Mr. Nethercutt), who, unfortunately, cannot be here with us
today, takes us one step closer to preventing these devastating
complications. H.R. 3858 will help increase the supply of pancreata for
islet cell transplantation and better coordinate Federal Government
efforts and information. These

[[Page H8074]]

are narrow, yet essential, improvements to our health care system that
may not only change the lives of people with juvenile diabetes but also
will reduce costs in our health care system.
The total annual cost of diabetes in 2002 was estimated to be $132
billion. Of that, $23 billion was due to the cost care for
complications of diabetes. This is exactly why we need to use new
procedures like islet cell transplantation to improve lives and reduce
the cost of health care in the United States.
We are at a time of extraordinary opportunity in the field of
juvenile diabetes research, and pancreatic islet cell transplantation
is just one of the new procedures that gives us great hope. The
gentleman from Washington (Mr. Nethercutt) and I have been the co-
chairs of the Congressional Diabetes Caucus for many years now, and we
are pleased to say it is still the largest caucus in Congress. We have
seen the technologies improve, and we have worked to improve the
coordination and Federal support for diabetes programs. The Pancreatic
Islet Cell Transplantation Act continues that work.
Like so many of my colleagues, I support improved scientifically
based efforts that will improve patients' lives and even eradicate this
disease. Since the science in this area is developing at a rapid pace,
additional efforts are needed to ensure that Federal policies and
regulatory actions support the momentum.
I want to add my thanks to the gentleman from Texas (Chairman Barton)
and for the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell) as well as the
Committee on Energy and Commerce staff on both sides of the aisle for
their hard work and diligence on this and all of the health bills being
considered today.

{time} 1430

Their leadership provides exactly the kind of bipartisan cooperation
that we need to address significant issues like improving our health
care system, that Congress faces today.
I also want to thank the volunteers of the Juvenile Diabetes Research
Foundation and the American Diabetes Association. These two
organizations have been tireless, and they are to be commended.
Finally, Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank you for all of your hard
work in this area over the years.
Pancreatic islet cell transplantation is an incredible innovation in
medicine. I urge all of my colleagues to support this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. BARTON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, let me in summary again commend the gentlewoman from
Colorado (Ms. DeGette), the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell) and
all the folks on the minority side that worked with us on this. I want
to thank again the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Nethercutt) for his
work.
This bill is going to pass on suspension, which shows how
noncontroversial and bipartisan this particular issue is. But this is a
bill that is worthy of considerable celebration because if you have a
family member that has diabetes and you have to watch and sometimes
help them get their insulin injections, the ability to get an islet
cell transplant revolutionizes their life. It is just amazing.
Our problem is that there just are not enough organ donations to make
it possible to do this for many people. Hopefully, this legislation
will make it possible to get more donations and, over time, perhaps
even do the research that can result in being able to replicate the
islet cells so that every diabetic in the country that wants one of
these transplants can get that.
So I cannot say in stronger terms how happy I am to bring this to the
floor, and I would urge unanimous adoption of the bill.
Mr. NETHERCUTT. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the
Pancreatic Islet Cell Transplantation Act and urge my colleagues to
pass this bill
As the parent of a daughter with Type 1, or juvenile diabetes, I can
tell you that it is a terrible disease. People with diabetes must
contend with daily insulin injections and blood tests to monitor
glucose levels. Hanging above this constant management is the
threatening cloud of complications, such as kidney failure, blindness
or amputation that this disease so often brings.
The legislation that we consider today reflects an extraordinary
opportunity in the field of juvenile diabetes research. Pancreatic
islet transplantation has been hailed as the most important advance in
diabetes research since the discovery of insulin in 1921. The
procedure, which involves transplanting insulin-producing cells into an
individual with juvenile diabetes, has been performed on over 300
individuals, and the majority of them no longer need to take insulin to
stay alive. While significant research remains to be done to expand
this procedure to all who suffer with juvenile diabetes, its promise is
incredibly exciting for families like mine.
My bill seeks to remove some of the non-scientific barriers currently
before the scientists racing to perfect this procedure. A shortage of
donor pancreata is one of the major obstacles to higher transplant
rates. In 2001, approximately 1,800 pancreata were donated and only 500
were available for islet cell transplantation and research. At the same
time, more than one million people suffer from juvenile diabetes.
Current Federal regulations do not credit organ procurement
organizations (OPOs) for harvesting pancreases for islet cell
transplantation toward their certification or recertification. The
Pancreatic Islet Cell Transplantation Act alters these regulations to
credit OPOs for pancreata used for islet cell transplantation or
research.
This legislation provides help for an extremely promising procedure,
that in turn offers a great deal of hope to the millions of Americans
with juvenile diabetes. It gives me great pride to have introduced this
bill, and I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
Ms. DeGETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. BARTON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my
time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Fossella). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Barton) that the House suspend
the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 3858.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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