Diabetes Research Amendments of 1997

Summary: Diabetes Research Amendments of 1997 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases and the Diabetes Mellitus Interagency Coordinating Committee to establish a comprehensive plan for the conduct and support of diabetes research.  Mandates establishment of a Diabetes Research-Plan Working Group.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Diabetes Research Amendments of 
1997''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds as follows:
            (1) Approximately 16,000,000 Americans suffer from 
        diabetes, and another 650,000 will be newly diagnosed during 
        1997.
            (2) Diabetes and its complications are a leading cause of 
        death by disease in America, and reduce life expectancy by up 
        to 30 percent. During 1997 diabetes and its complications will 
        contribute to the deaths of more than 170,000 Americans.
            (3) The total health-care-related costs of diabetes, 
        consisting of hospital stays, nursing home services, physician 
        care, laboratory tests, and pharmaceutical products, total over 
        $130,000,000,000 per year.
            (4) Diabetes is the leading cause of new cases of blindness 
        in the United States, with 24,000 new cases resulting from 
        diabetes each year.
            (5) One-third of all kidney dialysis patients have 
        diabetes-related kidney failure.
            (6) Diabetes is a leading risk factor for coronary artery 
        disease overall, and in particular for women between the ages 
        of 30 and 55. Women with either Type I or Type II diabetes have 
        almost a two-fold risk of developing coronary artery disease.
            (7) Diabetic neuropathy affects 90 percent of people with 
        long-term diabetes and is a major contributor to lower 
        extremity amputations. Patients with diabetes account for more 
        than half of all leg amputations in the United States.
            (8) Sixty to 65 percent of people with diabetes are 
        affected by hypertension.
            (9) African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Native 
        Americans are at 1\1/2\ to 2\1/2\ times greater risk of 
        developing diabetes.

SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF PLAN FOR DIABETES-RELATED ACTIVITIES OF 
              NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH.

    (a) In General.--Subpart 3 of part C of title IV of the Public 
Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 285c et seq.) is amended by inserting 
after section 432 the following section:

                       ``plan regarding diabetes

    ``Sec. 432A. (a) With respect to activities of the National 
Institutes of Health that relate to diabetes, the Director of the 
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, and 
the Diabetes Mellitus Interagency Coordinating Committee established 
under section 429, shall--
            ``(1) establish a comprehensive plan for the conduct and 
        support of such activities of the Institute, and of each other 
        agency of the National Institutes of Health that has 
        responsibilities regarding diabetes, which plan shall have the 
        goal of developing future diabetes research initiatives and 
        direction;
            ``(2) ensure that such plan establishes priorities among 
        such activities; and
            ``(3) review the plan not less than annually, and revise 
        the plan as appropriate.
    ``(b) Not later than 12 months after the date of the enactment of 
the Diabetes Research Amendments of 1997, the Director of the Institute 
and the Diabetes Mellitus Interagency Coordinating Committee shall 
establish the initial plan under subsection (a) and shall submit the 
plan to the Congress.''.
    (b) Diabetes Research-Plan Working Group.--
            (1) Establishment.--The Director of the National Institutes 
        of Health shall establish a Diabetes Research-Plan Working 
        Group (in this subsection referred to as the ``Working 
        Group'').
            (2) Duties.--The Working Group shall consult with the 
        Director of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive 
        and Kidney Diseases, and the Diabetes Mellitus Interagency 
        Coordinating Committee, for the purpose of providing advice to 
        the Director and the Coordinating Committee on the development 
        of the initial plan referred to in section 432A(b) of the 
        Public Health Service Act (as added by subsection (a) of this 
        section).
            (3) Composition.--
                    (A) In general.--The Working Group shall in 
                accordance with this paragraph be composed of not more 
                than 30 members appointed by the Director of the 
                National Institutes of Health or selected by such 
                Director as ex officio members.
                    (B) Participation of certain agencies.--The members 
                of the Working Group shall include one or more 
                representatives from each of the following agencies:
                            (i) The National Institute of Diabetes and 
                        Digestive and Kidney Diseases.
                            (ii) The National Eye Institute.
                            (iii) The National Heart, Lung, and Blood 
                        Institute.
                            (iv) The National Institute of Allergy and 
                        Infectious Diseases.
                            (v) The National Institute of Child Health 
                        and Human Development.
                            (vi) The National Institute of Dental 
                        Research.
                            (vii) The National Institute of General 
                        Medical Sciences.
                            (viii) The National Institute of 
                        Neurological Disorders and Stroke.
                            (ix) The National Center for Research 
                        Resources.
                            (x) The National Center for Human Genome 
                        Research.
                    (C) Participation of private sector.--The appointed 
                members of the Working Group shall include individuals 
                appointed from among individuals who are not officers 
                or employees of the Federal Government, which 
                individuals shall include leading diabetes researchers, 
                leaders from the health care industry, and leaders of 
                organizations that represent individuals with diabetes.
            (4) Chair.--The Director of the National Institutes of 
        Health shall select a member of the Working Group to serve as 
        the chair of the Group. The chair shall be an individual who 
        was appointed to the Group from among individuals who were not 
        officers or employees of the Federal Government.
            (5) Date certain for appointments.--The Director of the 
        National Institutes of Health shall complete appointments to 
        the Working Group not later than the expiration of the 90-day 
        period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act.
            (6) Termination.--The Working Group terminates upon the 
        expiration of the 30-day period beginning on the date on which 
        the plan referred to in paragraph (2) is submitted to the 
        Congress.
    (c) Conforming Amendment Regarding Biennial Report to Congress.--
Section 433(1) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 285c-7(1)) 
is amended by striking ``current diabetes plan'' and all that follows 
through the semicolon at the end and inserting ``diabetes plan under 
section 432A;''.