[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 99 (Tuesday, July 25, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1522]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E1522]]
                  AUGUST AS PSORIASIS AWARENESS MONTH

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                          HON. EARL BLUMENAUER

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 25, 2006

  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, in recognition of the National Psoriasis 
Foundation and of August as Psoriasis Awareness Month, I would like to 
bring attention to this often overlooked and serious disease that 
affects as many as 7.5 million Americans. Psoriasis is a chronic, 
inflammatory, painful, disfiguring and disabling disease for which 
there are limited treatments and no cure. Ten to 30 percent of people 
with psoriasis also develop psoriatic arthritis, which causes pain, 
stiffness and swelling in and around the joints. Psoriasis is widely 
misunderstood and undertreated. In addition to the pain, itching and 
bleeding caused by psoriasis, many affected individuals also experience 
social discrimination and stigma. Many people mistakenly believe 
psoriasis to be contagious. Psoriasis typically strikes between the 
ages of 15 and 25 and lasts a lifetime. As such, psoriasis and 
psoriatic arthritis impose significant burden on individuals and 
society; together they cost the nation 56 million hours of lost work 
and between $2 billion and $3 billion in treatments each year.
  I am pleased that the 89,000 affected Oregonians have access to the 
knowledgeable support offered by the Oregon affiliate of the National 
Psoriasis Foundation. Support group interaction and discussion provides 
individuals affected by this debilitating disease with much-needed 
comfort, assistance and resources. The work of the support groups in 
Oregon is invaluable, and I commend the efforts of those involved.
  I thank the National Psoriasis Foundation for all of its efforts and 
leadership over the last 38 years. This year, the National Psoriasis 
Foundation had nearly one hundred participants join in its Capitol Hill 
Day to elevate awareness and understanding of psoriasis and psoriatic 
arthritis and have policymakers take action to address access to care 
and boost the nation's research efforts.

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