[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 152 (Wednesday, November 16, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2377]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             ON THE FUNDING OF GULF WAR VETERANS ILLNESSES

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. DENNIS J. KUCINICH

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 16, 2005

  Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I sent the attached letter, along with my 
colleagues, in support of Gulf War Veterans Illnesses Research funding 
in the Conference Report of the Defense Appropriations Bill on November 
10, 2005.


                                Congress of the United States,

                                Washington, DC, November 10, 2005.
     The Hon. C.W. Bill Young,
     Chairman, Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, H-309 U.S. 
         Capitol, Washington, DC.
     The Hon. John P. Murtha,
     Ranking Member, Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, 1016 
         Longworth House Office Building, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Young and Ranking Member Murtha: As the 
     conferees begin to work on the fiscal year 2006 
     Appropriations bill for the Subcommittee on Defense, we 
     respectfully seek your support for retaining the House 
     funding level of $10 million for Gulf War Veterans Illnesses 
     research.
       The Congressionally chartered Veterans' Administration 
     Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses 
     found in September 2004 that fourteen years after the 1990-
     1991 Gulf War, between 26 and 32 percent of those who served 
     in that war continue to suffer from serious and persistent 
     health problems--typically multiple symptoms that include 
     severe headaches, memory problems, muscle and joint pain, 
     severe gastrointestinal problems, respiratory problems, skin 
     disorders and other problems. They also determined that the 
     existence of these serious and often debilitating problems 
     could not be scientifically explained by stress or 
     psychiatric illness.
       We are only now starting to see the long-term effects. For 
     example, ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease, occurs in Persian Gulf 
     veterans with twice the frequency of peer veterans that were 
     not deployed. Yet a federal research program to better 
     understand these issues that was once $45 million strong has 
     been virtually eliminated. The FY 06 budget dedicates no 
     funding to either the Department of Defense or the Department 
     of Health and Human Services for Gulf War Illnesses research. 
     The funding we are requesting is consistent with the VA 
     Research Committee recommendations.
       The amendment to the FY 06 House Defense appropriations 
     bill that added the research funding was well supported. It 
     passed by voice vote, had bipartisan support and was backed 
     by the American Legion, Paralyzed Veterans of America, the 
     National Gulf War Resource Center, Vietnam Veterans of 
     America, and Veterans of Foreign Wars.
       Finally, research guidance was developed in consultation 
     with top members of the VA Research Committee. We therefore 
     request that the guidance, which is the same as that inserted 
     into the congressional record during bill debate, be included 
     in the conference report. The guidance text is attached for 
     your reference. We expect this research to supplement the 
     other promising research performed at Army Research, 
     Development, Test and Evaluation within the Department of 
     Defense.
       Thank you for consideration of our requests.
           Sincerely,
         Dennis J. Kucinich, Bernard Sanders, Frank Pallone, Jr., 
           Jim McDermott, Lane Evans, Tammy Baldwin, Christopher 
           Shays, Rob Simmons, Rush D. Holt, Barbara Lee, Albert 
           R. Wynn, Carolyn B. Maloney, Lloyd Doggett, Joseph 
           Crowley, Raul Grijalva, John Conyers, Jr., Jay Inslee, 
           Dennis Moore, Collin C. Peterson, Betty McCollum, Ed 
           Case, Members of Congress.

  Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses Research Guidance for the FY06 Defense 
              Department Appropriations Conference Report

       It is intended that the appropriation for research on 
     chronic illnesses affecting veterans of the 1991 Gulf War be 
     used for a coherent research program focusing on (1) 
     identification of mechanisms underlying Gulf War illnesses, 
     (2) chronic effects of neurotoxic substances to which 
     veterans were exposed during deployment; (3) studies that 
     expand on earlier research identifying neurological and 
     immunological abnomalities in ill Gulf War veterans; and (4) 
     identification of promising treatments. The primary objective 
     of the research program will be to elucidate 
     pathophysiological mechanisms underlying Gulf War illnesses, 
     which may subsequently be targeted to developing treatments 
     for these conditions. A further objective will be to identify 
     and evaluate treatments which currently exist and which hold 
     promise for treating these illnesses.
       The U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command shall, 
     in consultation with experienced research scientists in 
     relevant fields, establish a list of research questions to 
     address the above topics, and design a program of specific 
     research studies that together constitute a coherent plan to 
     answer these questions, each identified study to be conducted 
     by the most qualified researcher, which may include consulted 
     scientists. As part of this process, there shall be a public 
     solicitation of research proposals (which may include concept 
     exploration and pilot projects) on these questions and at 
     least twenty-five percent of the program (measured by amount 
     funded) shall be made up of proposals selected from this 
     solicitation, as modified if necessary to increase the value 
     of the proposed research to the overall program. At least 
     twenty percent of the program (measured by amount funded) 
     shall address the objective of identifying and evaluating 
     promising existing treatments, such as observation and pilot 
     studies. The program shall be submitted for determination of 
     scientific merit through independent peer review.
    




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