[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 79 (Tuesday, May 15, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2681-S2682]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        SENATE RESOLUTION 508--SUPPORTING THE GOALS OF MYALGIC 
 ENCEPHALOMYELITIS/CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME INTERNATIONAL AWARENESS DAY

  Mr. MARKEY (for himself, Mr. King, Mr. Van Hollen, and Ms. Collins) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions:

                              S. Res. 508

       Whereas the Health and Medicine Division of the National 
     Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (referred to 
     in this preamble as ``HMD''), formerly known as the Institute 
     of Medicine, has found Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic 
     Fatigue Syndrome (referred to in this preamble as ``ME/CFS'') 
     to be ``a serious, chronic, complex, and systemic disease 
     that frequently and dramatically limits the activities of 
     affected patients'';
       Whereas between 836,000 and 2,500,000 individuals of all 
     ages, races, and sexes in the United States are believed to 
     be afflicted with ME/CFS, with millions more afflicted by ME/
     CFS worldwide, and the vast majority of individuals with ME/
     CFS are undiagnosed or misdiagnosed;
       Whereas ME/CFS is approximately 4 times more prevalent in 
     women than in men;
       Whereas ME/CFS is a chronic disease that persists for 
     decades and leaves \1/4\ of individuals with ME/CFS 
     housebound or bedbound, often for years;
       Whereas 50 to 75 percent of individuals with ME/CFS cannot 
     work or attend school;
       Whereas medical expenses and lost productivity related to 
     ME/CFS cost the economy of the United States $17,000,000,000 
     to $24,000,000,000 annually;
       Whereas the cause of ME/CFS is unknown, there is no 
     diagnostic test for ME/CFS, and there is no treatment for ME/
     CFS that is approved by the Food and Drug Administration;
       Whereas HMD has noted a ``paucity of research'' on ME/CFS 
     and that ``more research is essential'';
       Whereas individuals with ME/CFS struggle to find doctors 
     who are willing and able to care for them and ME/CFS is 
     included in less than \1/3\ of medical curricula;
       Whereas, in recognition of the dearth of research on ME/CFS 
     and the profound impact

[[Page S2682]]

     that the disease has on individuals with ME/CFS and their 
     loved ones and caretakers, the National Institutes of Health 
     (referred to in this preamble as the ``NIH'') is ``committed 
     to unraveling the underlying biologic cause(s) of ME/CFS as 
     swiftly as possible, and promoting research that will inform 
     the development of effective strategies for treatment and 
     prevention of this devastating condition'';
       Whereas, in 2017, 11 Institutes at the NIH that participate 
     in the Trans-NIH Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue 
     Syndrome Working Group and the Office of the Director of the 
     NIH contributed more than $7,000,000 in grants to assist in 
     establishing Collaborative Research Centers and a Data 
     Management Coordinating Center to improve the coordination of 
     ME/CFS research and help accelerate understanding of ME/CFS; 
     and
       Whereas, in 2018, May 12 is recognized as International 
     Awareness Day for ME/CFS and other neurological conditions: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) supports the goals of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic 
     Fatigue Syndrome International Awareness Day;
       (2) recognizes and affirms the commitment of the United 
     States to--
       (A) discovering the cause of, and a cure for, Myalgic 
     Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; and
       (B) improving the availability and quality of medical care 
     for individuals with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic 
     Fatigue Syndrome; and
       (3) encourages--
       (A) the National Institutes of Health and other Federal 
     agencies to work with experts, stakeholders, and individuals 
     with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome to--
       (i) consider the recommendations of the National Academies 
     of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine relating to Myalgic 
     Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; and
       (ii) support research to discover the cause of, and a cure 
     for, Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; and
       (B) the medical community to enhance practitioner training 
     to provide appropriate and accessible care for individuals 
     with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

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