III 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 130 

Recognizing the significance of endometriosis as an unmet chronic disease 

for women and designating March 2019 as ‘‘Endometriosis Awareness 

Month’’. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 28, 2019 

Ms. DUCKWORTH (for herself, Mrs. CAPITO, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Mr. 

BLUMENTHAL, Ms. WARREN, Ms. CANTWELL, and Mrs. FEINSTEIN) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 

the Judiciary 

RESOLUTION 

Recognizing the significance of endometriosis as an unmet 

chronic disease for women and designating March 2019 

as ‘‘Endometriosis Awareness Month’’. 

Whereas 6,500,000 women in the United States are living 

with endometriosis; 

Whereas endometriosis is a chronic disease affecting— 

(1) 176,000,000 women throughout the world; and 

(2) an estimated 1 in 10 women in the United 

States between the ages of 18 and 49; 

Whereas medical societies and patient groups have expressed 

the need for greater public attention and updated resources targeted to public education about this unmet 

health need for women; 


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•SRES 130 IS 

Whereas endometriosis occurs when tissue similar to that 

normally found in the uterus begins to grow outside the 

uterus; 

Whereas, although endometriosis is one of the most common 

gynecological disorders in the United States, there is a 

lack of awareness and prioritization of endometriosis as 

an important health issue for women; 

Whereas women can suffer for up to 10 years before being 

properly diagnosed; 

Whereas approximately 1⁄3 to 1⁄2 of all women with endometriosis will have difficulty getting pregnant; 

Whereas endometriosis is a painful and debilitating disorder; 

Whereas endometriosis is associated with increased health 

care costs and poses a substantial burden to patients in 

the health care system; 

Whereas the total annual direct health care cost of symptoms 

associated with endometriosis is $56,000,000,000, or 

nearly $11,000 per patient; 

Whereas 51 percent of endometriosis patients report that the 

disease detrimentally affects their performance of their 

job; 

Whereas the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 

found that the average number of ‘‘bed days’’ for patients with endometriosis was 18 days per year; 

Whereas women with endometriosis can lose 11 hours per 

work week through lost productivity; 

Whereas, in 2010, endometriosis patients were hospitalized 

over 100,000 days because of the disease; 

Whereas there is a need for more research and updated 

guidelines to treat endometriosis; 


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•SRES 130 IS 

Whereas the research dollars from the National Institutes of 

Health dedicated to endometriosis has dropped from 

$16,000,000 in 2010 to $6,000,000 in 2019; 

Whereas there is an ongoing need for additional clinical research and treatment options to manage this debilitating 

disease; and 

Whereas there is no known cure for endometriosis: Now, 

therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) designates March 2019 as ‘‘Endometriosis 

3 Awareness Month’’; 

4 (2) recognizes the importance of endometriosis 

5 as a health issue for women that requires far greater 

6 attention, public awareness, and education about the 

7 disease; 

8 (3) encourages the Secretary of Health and 

9 Human Services— 

10 (A) to provide information to women, pa11 tients, and health care providers with respect to 

12 endometriosis, including available screening 

13 tools and treatment options, with a goal of im14 proving the quality of life and health outcomes 

15 of women affected by endometriosis; 

16 (B) to conduct additional research on 

17 endometriosis and possible clinical options; and 


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•SRES 130 IS 

1 (C) to update information, tools, and stud2 ies currently available with respect to helping 

3 women live with endometriosis; and 

4 (4) respectfully requests that the Secretary of 

5 the Senate transmit an enrolled copy of this resolu6 tion to the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 

Æ 


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