II 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 228 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to establish an Office of Men’s 

Health. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 1, 2005 

Mr. CRAPO introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to establish an 

Office of Men’s Health. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Men’s Health Act of 

5 2005’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds as follows: 

8 (1) A silent health crisis is affecting the health 

9 and well-being of America’s men. 
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1 (2) While this health crisis is of particular con2 cern to men, it is also a concern for women regard3 ing their fathers, husbands, sons, and brothers. 

4 (3) Men’s health is a concern for employers who 

5 pay the costs of medical care, and lose productive 

6 employees. 

7 (4) Men’s health is a concern to Federal and 

8 State governments which absorb the enormous costs 

9 of premature death and disability, including the 

10 costs of caring for dependents left behind. 

11 (5) The life expectancy gap between men and 

12 women has increased from one year in 1920 to al13 most six years in 2002. 

14 (6) Prostate cancer is the most frequently diag15 nosed cancer in the United States among men, ac16 counting for 33 percent of all cancer cases. 

17 (7) An estimated 230,000 men will be newly di18 agnosed with prostate cancer this year alone, and 

19 approximately 30,000 will die. 

20 (8) Prostate cancer rates increase sharply with 

21 age, and more than 75 percent of such cases are di22 agnosed in men age 65 and older. 

23 (9) The incidence of prostate cancer and the re24 sulting mortality rate in African American men is 

25 twice that in white men. 
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1 (10) Over 8,000 men, ages 15 to 40, will be di2 agnosed this year with testicular cancer, and 390 of 

3 these men will die of this disease in 2005. A com4 mon reason for delay in treatment of this disease is 

5 a delay in seeking medical attention after discov6 ering a testicular mass. 

7 (11) Studies show that women are 100 percent 

8 more likely than men to visit a doctor, have regular 

9 physician check-ups, and obtain preventive screening 

10 tests for serious diseases. 

11 (12) Appropriate use of tests such as prostate 

12 specific antigen (PSA) exams and blood pressure, 

13 blood sugar, and cholesterol screens, in conjunction 

14 with clinical exams and self-testing, can result in the 

15 early detection of many problems and in increased 

16 survival rates. 

17 (13) Educating men, their families, and health 

18 care providers about the importance of early detec19 tion of male health problems can result in reducing 

20 rates of mortality for male-specific diseases, as well 

21 as improve the health of America’s men and its over22 all economic well-being. 

23 (14) Recent scientific studies have shown that 

24 regular medical exams, preventive screenings, reg-
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1 ular exercise, and healthy eating habits can help 

2 save lives. 

3 (15) Establishing an Office of Men’s Health is 

4 needed to investigate these findings and take such 

5 further actions as may be needed to promote men’s 

6 health. 

7 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE OF MEN’S HEALTH. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title XVII of the Public Health 

9 Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300u et seq.) is amended by adding 

10 at the end the following section: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 1711. OFFICE OF MEN’S HEALTH. 

12 ‘‘The Secretary shall establish within the Department 

13 of Health and Human Services an office to be known as 

14 the Office of Men’s Health, which shall be headed by a 

15 director appointed by the Secretary. The Secretary, acting 

16 through the Director of the Office, shall coordinate and 

17 promote the status of men’s health in the United States.’’. 

18 (b) REPORT.—Not later than two years after the date 

19 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and 

20 Human Services, acting through the Director of the Office 

21 of Men’s Health, shall submit to the Congress a report 

22 describing the activities of such Office, including findings 

23 that the Director has made regarding men’s health. 

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