[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 15]
[House]
[Page 21894]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



               LUPUS RESEARCH AND CARE AMENDMENTS OF 2000

  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 762) to amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for 
research and services with respect to lupus, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                                H.R. 762

       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 ``Lupus Research and Care 
     Amendments of 2000''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       The Congress finds that--
       (1) lupus is a serious, complex, inflammatory, autoimmune 
     disease of particular concern to women;
       (2) lupus affects women 9 times more often than men;
       (3) there are 3 main types of lupus: systemic lupus, a 
     serious form of the disease that affects many parts of the 
     body; discoid lupus, a form of the disease that affects 
     mainly the skin; and drug-induced lupus caused by certain 
     medications;
       (4) lupus can be fatal if not detected and treated early;
       (5) the disease can simultaneously affect various areas of 
     the body, such as the skin, joints, kidneys, and brain, and 
     can be difficult to diagnose because the symptoms of lupus 
     are similar to those of many other diseases;
       (6) lupus disproportionately affects African-American 
     women, as the prevalence of the disease among such women is 3 
     times the prevalence among white women, and an estimated 1 in 
     250 African-American women between the ages of 15 and 65 
     develops the disease;
       (7) it has been estimated that between 1,400,000 and 
     2,000,000 Americans have been diagnosed with the disease, and 
     that many more have undiagnosed cases;
       (8) current treatments for the disease can be effective, 
     but may lead to damaging side effects;
       (9) many victims of the disease suffer debilitating pain 
     and fatigue, making it difficult to maintain employment and 
     lead normal lives; and
       (10) in fiscal year 1996, the amount allocated by the 
     National Institutes of Health for research on lupus was 
     $33,000,000, which is less than \1/2\ of 1 percent of the 
     budget for such Institutes.

                       TITLE I--RESEARCH ON LUPUS

     SEC. 101. EXPANSION AND INTENSIFICATION OF ACTIVITIES.

       Subpart 4 of part C of title IV of the Public Health 
     Service Act (42 U.S.C. 285d et seq.) is amended by inserting 
     after section 441 the following section:


                                ``lupus

       ``Sec. 441A. (a) In General.--The Director of the Institute 
     shall expand and intensify research and related activities of 
     the Institute with respect to lupus.
       ``(b) Coordination With Other Institutes.--The Director of 
     the Institute shall coordinate the activities of the Director 
     under subsection (a) with similar activities conducted by the 
     other national research institutes and agencies of the 
     National Institutes of Health to the extent that such 
     Institutes and agencies have responsibilities that are 
     related to lupus.
       ``(c) Programs for Lupus.--In carrying out subsection (a), 
     the Director of the Institute shall conduct or support 
     research to expand the understanding of the causes of, and to 
     find a cure for, lupus. Activities under such subsection 
     shall include conducting and supporting the following:
       ``(1) Research to determine the reasons underlying the 
     elevated prevalence of lupus in women, including African-
     American women.
       ``(2) Basic research concerning the etiology and causes of 
     the disease.
       ``(3) Epidemiological studies to address the frequency and 
     natural history of the disease and the differences among the 
     sexes and among racial and ethnic groups with respect to the 
     disease.
       ``(4) The development of improved diagnostic techniques.
       ``(5) Clinical research for the development and evaluation 
     of new treatments, including new biological agents.
       ``(6) Information and education programs for health care 
     professionals and the public.
       ``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--For the purpose of 
     carrying out this section, there are authorized to be 
     appropriated such sums as may be necessary for each of the 
     fiscal years 2001 through 2003.''.

             TITLE II--DELIVERY OF SERVICES REGARDING LUPUS

     SEC. 201. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM OF GRANTS.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services 
     shall in accordance with this title make grants to provide 
     for projects for the establishment, operation, and 
     coordination of effective and cost-efficient systems for the 
     delivery of essential services to individuals with lupus and 
     their families.
       (b) Recipients of Grants.--A grant under subsection (a) may 
     be made to an entity only if the entity is a public or 
     nonprofit private entity, which may include a State or local 
     government; a public or nonprofit private hospital, 
     community-based organization, hospice, ambulatory care 
     facility, community health center, migrant health center, or 
     homeless health center; or other appropriate public or 
     nonprofit private entity.
       (c) Certain Activities.--To the extent practicable and 
     appropriate, the Secretary shall ensure that projects under 
     subsection (a) provide services for the diagnosis and disease 
     management of lupus. Activities that the Secretary may 
     authorize for such projects may also include the following:
       (1) Delivering or enhancing outpatient, ambulatory, and 
     home-based health and support services, including case 
     management and comprehensive treatment services, for 
     individuals with lupus; and delivering or enhancing support 
     services for their families.
       (2) Delivering or enhancing inpatient care management 
     services that prevent unnecessary hospitalization or that 
     expedite discharge, as medically appropriate, from inpatient 
     facilities of individuals with lupus.
       (3) Improving the quality, availability, and organization 
     of health care and support services (including transportation 
     services, attendant care, homemaker services, day or respite 
     care, and providing counseling on financial assistance and 
     insurance) for individuals with lupus and support services 
     for their families.
       (d) Integration With Other Programs.--To the extent 
     practicable and appropriate, the Secretary shall integrate 
     the program under this title with other grant programs 
     carried out by the Secretary, including the program under 
     section 330 of the Public Health Service Act.

     SEC. 202. CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS.

       A grant may be made under section 201 only if the applicant 
     involved makes the following agreements:
       (1) Not more than 5 percent of the grant will be used for 
     administration, accounting, reporting, and program oversight 
     functions.
       (2) The grant will be used to supplement and not supplant 
     funds from other sources related to the treatment of lupus.
       (3) The applicant will abide by any limitations deemed 
     appropriate by the Secretary on any charges to individuals 
     receiving services pursuant to the grant. As deemed 
     appropriate by the Secretary, such limitations on charges may 
     vary based on the financial circumstances of the individual 
     receiving services.
       (4) The grant will not be expended to make payment for 
     services authorized under section 201(a) to the extent that 
     payment has been made, or can reasonably be expected to be 
     made, with respect to such services--
       (A) under any State compensation program, under an 
     insurance policy, or under any Federal or State health 
     benefits program; or
       (B) by an entity that provides health services on a prepaid 
     basis.
       (5) The applicant will, at each site at which the applicant 
     provides services under section 201(a), post a conspicuous 
     notice informing individuals who receive the services of any 
     Federal policies that apply to the applicant with respect to 
     the imposition of charges on such individuals.

     SEC. 203. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.

       The Secretary may provide technical assistance to assist 
     entities in complying with the requirements of this title in 
     order to make such entities eligible to receive grants under 
     section 201.

     SEC. 204. DEFINITIONS.

       For purposes of this title:
       (1) The term ``official poverty line'' means the poverty 
     line established by the Director of the Office of Management 
     and Budget and revised by the Secretary in accordance with 
     section 673(2) of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 
     1981.
       (2) The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Health 
     and Human Services.

     SEC. 205. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       For the purpose of carrying out this title, there are 
     authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary 
     for each of the fiscal years 2001 through 2003.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Bilirakis) and the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Brown) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis).


                             General Leave

  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 762, the bill now under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Florida?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I rise today in support 
of H.R. 762, the Lupus Research and Care Amendments. This important 
measure addresses the devastating, devastating, I underline 
devastating, disease of lupus. It was introduced by my colleague, the 
gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. Meek), who lost her sister to 
complications from the illness.
  Lupus is a disease which causes the body's immune system to attack 
its own cells, resulting in progressive damage to all organs. It 
affects more than 1.5 million Americans. The vast majority of patients 
who suffer from lupus are women, and a disproportionate number are 
minorities. Most women are afflicted in their childbearing years, 
making it difficult for them to work and care for their families.
  H.R. 762 expands lupus-related activities of the National Institutes 
of Health in the areas of basic research, epidemiology, treatment, 
diagnosis, and public and health care provider education. It also 
authorizes project grants for the delivery of essential services to 
individuals with lupus to be administered through local governments, 
community hospitals, and other nonprofit health care facilities.
  By enhancing research on lupus, the bill before us will speed the day 
when a cure is found for this terrible disease. H.R. 762 will provide 
early diagnosis and disease management services for lupus patients. It 
will also increase outreach and expand patient care among low- income 
populations. Further, the initiatives authorized under this measure 
will provide a road map for other private and public programs to help 
victims of lupus.
  H.R. 762, Mr. Speaker, has the support of 245 cosponsors in the 
House; and it was unanimously approved by the Committee on Commerce 
last month. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting passage of 
this very important legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to commend the gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. 
Meek) for her dedication on the issue of lupus and her successful 
effort to put together widespread support for this bill in Congress. 
This bill has special meaning for my colleague, and I am proud to be 
one of the bill's 243 cosponsors.
  H.R. 762 provides a blueprint for combating lupus, a complex and 
lethal autoimmune disorder for which there currently is no cure. Lupus 
affects nine times more women than men, disproportionately more blacks, 
Hispanics, more Asians, and is most commonly diagnosed in individuals 
between the ages of 15 and 45.
  The ability of lupus, as well as other autoimmune diseases, to strike 
someone as young as 15 years old speaks to the need for expanded 
research. Lupus is not universally fatal. Young people with lupus are 
capable of living active lives, but diagnosis is difficult. There is 
not a test for lupus, and young people will continue to suffer and die 
from lupus without our help.
  I am pleased that autoimmune disease research was included in the 
children's health bill now awaiting the President's signature. 
Autoimmune diseases are unique. Research on one, like lupus, can 
benefit many others in a synergistic sort of way.
  The bill sponsored by the gentlewoman from Florida is a responsible 
investment in our Nation's health, and I urge its passage.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. 
Meek), the author of this bill, who has fought on this issue for months 
and months and years and years.
  Mrs. MEEK of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding 
me this time. It is a very proud moment for me. It also is a moment of 
personal feeling at this time. I lost my dear sister to lupus and many 
of my very close friends.
  I want to thank the chairman, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. 
Bilirakis), for having gone with me for quite a few years. I first 
applied for this bill in 1995, and it has been back and forth. But now 
we are at the point where he has pushed, as chairman of the 
Subcommittee on Health and Environment, and now the gentleman from Ohio 
(Mr. Brown), as his ranking member. We have 243 people in this Congress 
who feel this is important.
  I am pleased to rise in support of it because it is going to expand 
and intensify the research part of lupus. NIH each year has done 
something toward the application of research to lupus, but now we are 
asking that this be a mandate of NIH to be sure that they expand 
research efforts, so it will make it much easier to diagnose this. This 
is a crippler, Mr. Speaker. It is a crippler and it is a killer. It 
catches women in their childbearing years, and it is time we put 
research into it to find out about it. There is very little known about 
this disease, too little known about it with its crippling effects.
  Since my arrival at the House in 1993, I have urged the Congress to 
direct NIH to mount an all-out campaign against lupus. If any of my 
colleagues have ever seen or talked to someone who suffers from this 
disease, they will surely understand why. My colleague, the gentlewoman 
from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen), and I have also fought for this in our 
Dade County. We have found a great number of Hispanic and black people 
who are certainly besieged by this terrible disease.
  I want to assure my dear colleagues that if we pass this bill and the 
Senate takes it up and passes it on to the President, and if he signs 
it, we will have alleviated in the future, I am sure, a great deal of 
pain and suffering.
  I want to thank the Speaker, and I want to thank the minority leader, 
the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Gephardt), the gentleman from Virginia 
(Mr. Bliley), the ranking member, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. 
Dingell), and chairman of the subcommittee, the gentleman from Florida 
(Mr. Bilirakis), to be sure, as well as the ranking member, the 
gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Brown), of the subcommittee. If it were not 
for the top of the tickets here pushing this bill, I do not think it 
would have come to this floor.
  A word of thanks to the chairman of the Committee on Appropriations, 
the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Young), the ranking member, the 
gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Obey), and chairman of the Subcommittee 
on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Porter). And here I want to take a special moment to 
thank the gentleman from Illinois, Mr. Speaker. Every year, every time 
the appropriations bill came before him, we did not have any kind of 
legislation that would authorize it, but he still added money to the 
NIH budget because he saw the very, very deleterious effects of this 
disease.

                              {time}  1530

  So I certainly want to thank all those people and last, but not 
least, my 244 colleagues who have cosponsored this bill for bringing 
their help in bringing this bipartisan measure to the floor.
  I want to especially thank Duane Peters and Lee Peckarsky of the 
Lupus Foundation of America and all of the dedicated lupus volunteers 
from all around America who work so tirelessly to support this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, we have heard a lot today about lupus. It is an 
autoimmune disease that afflicts women nine times more than it does 
men. It has its most significant impact on women during the child-
bearing years. About 1.4 million Americans have some form of lupus, one 
out of every 185 Americans. Many of them do not even recognize that 
they have it. Many think they have arthritis or some kind of rheumatoid 
disease because the diagnosis is so very hard.
  Lupus disproportionately affects African-American women. The 
prevalence of lupus among African-American women is three times that of 
white women. We do not yet know why this is so. This is one of the many 
mysteries about lupus that still needs to be resolved.
  Thousands of women with lupus die each year. Thousands of women die 
from complications caused by lupus. Many other victims suffer 
debilitating pain and fatigue, making it difficult to maintain 
employment and lead normal lives. Many women who have young babies and 
have lupus cannot even hold their children. Lupus is devastating not 
only to the patient but to family members, as well.
  My bill authorizes appropriations of such funds as are necessary for 
fiscal year 2000 through fiscal year 2003 for lupus research so badly 
needed, Mr. Speaker. The education that goes along with this bill is so 
badly needed and the treatment, as well.
  So this also empowers the Secretary of the Department of Health and 
Human Services to protect the poor and the uninsured from financial 
devastation by limiting charges to individuals receiving lupus services 
pursuant to the grant program, the way that we do under the Ryan White 
CARE Act.
  It is very important, Mr. Speaker, that we realize that this is a 
bipartisan bill that has been carried through this process by both 
Republicans and Democrats for the benefit of the people of America.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman 
from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee).
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis) and thank the gentleman from 
Ohio (Mr. Brown) for their leadership in this legislation and the 
chairman and the ranking member. I am also proud to be a co-sponsor of 
this important legislation.
  But I would really like to shower applause down on my good colleague 
and friend the gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. Meek) for the leadership 
that she has offered and the persistence that she has offered not only 
on the floor of the House and tracking this bill through Commerce, but 
working every year diligently with the appropriators to provide funds 
for research regarding this devastating disease.
  Lupus kills. I lost a very dear friend, a young mother, who did not 
get a chance to see her children grow up. And then I have a dear friend 
named Pat who lives valiantly with lupus but yet suffers every day. Her 
enthusiasm for being alive was seen through her hard work in organizing 
a Lupus Day walk to raise funds in Houston.
  I want to encourage those around the Nation who want to educate 
people about lupus to continue to go out and walk and to have walks 
that will raise private money and along with federal funds we may find 
a cure for this disease that strike down young women.
  Lupus does kill. It disproportionately affects African-American 
women, as the prevalence of the disease among such women is three times 
the prevalence among white women and an estimated one in 250 African-
American women between the ages of 15 and 65 develop the disease. But 
it affects all women. And more than 1.4 million to 2 million Americans 
have been diagnosed with the disease and there are many more 
undiagnosed cases because sometimes people do not know what they have, 
they just feel they have a few aches and pains. But yet, if they are 
not diagnosed, they can ultimately die from the disease.
  I want to thank the gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. Meek) for the $33 
million that was allocated in 1996 for the National Institutes for 
Health to do more research. This is an important legislative 
initiative. Every time we can come to the floor of the House in a 
bipartisan way to save lives of Americans, I think, Mr. Speaker, that 
we are doing what the American people would want us to do.
  I hope this legislation will be taken up in the Senate. And I believe 
that, with the passage of this legislation, we will be able to save 
many more lives and be on the pathway for doing more to improve the 
health of all Americans.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman 
from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell).
  Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. 
Brown) for yielding me the time.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to begin by acknowledging my colleague, the 
gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. Meek), for her hard work, determination, 
and advocacy on behalf of those with lupus. This is an issue that the 
congresswoman has been working on for a very long time. And I am 
pleased to see that the leadership is working in a bipartisan way to 
bring this legislation to the floor.
  Mr. Speaker, this should be the way we should handle all matters in 
these final, final days. We need to do here for those least able to 
help themselves. I think that should be the barometer. It will help us 
through these tough days.
  This is a serious, complex, inflammatory, autoimmune disease that 
affects women nine times more often than men. Oftentimes those 
suffering from lupus are not diagnosed in a timely manner. I have seen 
that happen to close friends. They remain in pain and the sickness 
progresses.
  It has been estimated that between 1.4 and 2 million Americans have 
been diagnosed with this disease and that many more have undiagnosed 
cases.
  The victims of the disease suffer debilitating pain and fatigue, 
making it difficult to maintain employment and to lead normal lives.
  This critical legislation will correct the oversight that was made in 
the past by providing increased funding for NIH scientific and clinical 
research and for improved patient access and care measures. It will 
ensure that every person who suffers from this disease will receive the 
highest quality of care possible.
  The funding will also improve the quality, availability, and the 
organization of health care and support services for individuals with 
lupus and support services for their families.
  I wholeheartedly support the passage of this legislation and 
encourage all my colleagues to do the same.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman 
from New York (Mr. Towns).
  Mr. TOWNS. Mr. Speaker, let me begin by first congratulating my 
colleague, the gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. Meek), of course and the 
ranking member of the subcommittee, as well.
  Let me just say that this is a very important piece of legislation. 
As we walk and we talk to people who are suffering from this disease, 
we think about the fact that maybe we need to do more. I think that 
this is a giant step in the right direction because we need to do more 
in terms of research and need to make certain that treatment is 
available to those that suffer from this illness.
  I think that access to treatment is very, very important. I think 
that when we look at many people in some of the rural areas of this 
country that are having great difficulty getting treatment, I think 
that this is the right step.
  I would like to again congratulate my colleague from Ohio and, of 
course, my colleague from Florida, both colleagues from Florida, for 
their outstanding work in this effort and to say to them that they 
probably do not realize how many lives they are saving and how many 
people that are encountering all kinds of difficulties that they are 
going to make life better for all of them. And I want to salute them 
for that.
  Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, just very quickly. This is a very, very important piece 
of legislation, and we are all very pleased to have been a part of it. 
An awful lot of hard work went into it.
  The personal staff of the gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. Meek) and my 
personal staff, Anne Esposito particularly, and the Committee on 
Commerce both majority and minority staffs are really to be 
congratulated. They are responsible for this more so than the rest of 
us.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask for support of this legislation.
  Mr. DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of 
H.R. 762, the Lupus Research and Care Amendments of 1999. I am proud to 
be a cosponsor of this legislation to expand and intensify the research 
efforts of the National Institute of Health to diagnose, treat, and 
eventually cure lupus.
  Lupus is a very serious illness that causes the body's immune system 
to attack its own cells. More people suffer from this little-known 
illness than from cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, sickle cell 
anemia, cystic fibrosis, and AIDS combined. Although lupus may occur at 
any age and in either sex, 90 percent of those affected are women. 
During the childbearing years, lupus strikes women 10 to 15 times more 
often than men. More than 1.5 million Americans have been diagnosed 
with this terrible disease. Many more cases go undiagnosed, since the 
symptoms of this disease tend to wax and wane with passing time.
  H.R. 762 would require the Director of the National Institute of 
Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases to expand its research 
activities on the disease lupus, especially with regard to its 
increasing prevalence among women. The bill expands lupus-related 
activities at the Institute into the areas of basic research, 
epidemiology, treatment, diagnosis, and public and health care provider 
education. H.R. 762 also authorizes project grants to improve health 
delivery services through local governments and to community hospitals.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 762 would provide the needed support to NIH in 
their works towards making medical breakthroughs in the fight against 
lupus. I urge all of my colleagues to join me in voting in support of 
the lupus research and care amendments.
  Mr. DINGELL. Mr. Speaker, I strongly support H.R. 762, the Lupus 
Research and Care Amendments. I want to commend my good friend and 
colleague, Representative Carrie Meek for her steadfast advocacy for 
this excellent legislation. Lupus is a debilitating and sometimes fatal 
auto-immune disease that disproportionately afflicts women, 
particularly women of color. Today's vote brings help and hope to 
approximately 1.5 million Americans with lupus, and their families.
  H.R. 762 accomplishes two goals. Title I recognizes the National 
Institute of Health's (NIH) present research activities on the many 
facets of this disease through the National Institute of Arthritis and 
Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases and the Autoimmune Diseases 
Coordinating Committee. It authorizes appropriations to expand and 
intensify these activities with emphasis on earlier diagnosis, better 
treatment, and an eventual cure. Epidemiologic studies and education 
about lupus for the public and health professionals will also be 
undertaken with funds made available by this bill.
  Title II addresses on-going primary care and treatment needs of poor 
and uninsured individuals with this expensive-to-treat and debilitating 
disease. It authorizes the Secretary to award care grants to local 
governments, community hospitals, health centers, and other nonprofit 
health facilities for the provision of out-patient care and a breadth 
of support services to affect individuals and the family members who 
are involved in their care. The holistic treatment and support services 
provided by H.R. 762 will diminish the sense of isolation that is 
concomitant to chronic illness by weaving a safety-net of services.
  This an excellent bill and I urge my colleagues to join me in 
supporting its passage today.
  Mrs. MORELLA. Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to join my good friend and 
colleague, Congresswoman Carrie Meek, as we move forward and pass H.R. 
762, the Lupus Research and Care Amendments.
  This bill would amend the Public Health Service Act and require the 
Director of the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and 
Skin Diseases to expand and intensify its research activities on the 
disease lupus, especially with regard to its increasing prevalence 
among African-American and other women.
  This bill will expand lupus-related activities at the Institute into 
areas of basic research, treatment, diagnosis, and public and health 
care provider education.
  Mr. Speaker, lupus is an autoimmune disease, passage of this H.R. 
762, will leverage H.R. 4365, ``The Children Health Act of 2000'' which 
was recently passed by this House.
  Title XIX of this bill, ``NIH Initiative on Autoimmune Diseases'', 
requires the Director of NIH to expand, intensify, and coordinate the 
activities of NIH with respect to autoimmune diseases. This includes 
forming an Autoimmune Diseases Coordinating Committee and Advisory 
Council that will develop a plan for NIH activities related to 
autoimmune diseases and to require different institutes within NIH to 
provide a detailed report to Congress specifying how funds were spent 
on autoimmune diseases.
  Recently, the American Journal of Public Health published a study 
demonstrating that autoimmune disorders are among the top 10 leading 
causes of death among women under 65, indeed today, three-quarters of 
the 13.5 million Americans afflicted with an autoimmune disease are 
women.
  I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 762, to support the health of 
our nation's citizens.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Gibbons). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 762, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

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