I

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 5083

To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for the development

and operation of regional centers to conduct research and provide education and training regarding women’s health.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

SEPTEMBER 22, 1994

Ms. MARGOLIES-MEZVINSKY introduced the following bill; which was referred

to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

A BILL

To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for

the development and operation of regional centers to

conduct research and provide education and training regarding women’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 ‘‘Women’s Health

5 Regional Centers Act’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 The Congress finds as follows:
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1 (1) Until recently, women have been excluded

2 from most clinical trials for treatments for cancer,

3 heart disease, and stroke, despite the fact that

4 women react differently from men to many treat5 ments for these and other diseases.

6 (2) Historically, little research money has been

7 devoted to diseases that primarily afflict women,

8 such as osteoporosis, breast cancer, and multiple

9 sclerosis.

10 (3) The American medical education system has

11 not trained physicians and other health care profes12 sionals for women’s health needs. A major barrier to

13 change is the absence of an appropriate curriculum

14 on women’s health. Another barrier to change has

15 been the significant underrepresentation of women

16 in senior ranks of academic medicine. As long as

17 this void in women leaders is allowed to continue,

18 women’s health issues will not gain the appropriate

19 attention within the medical community.

20 (4) The establishment of the Office of Research

21 on Women’s Health at the National Institutes of

22 Health is vital to addressing the necessary research

23 for diseases and health conditions that affect

24 women. However, there is currently no means by
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1 which to translate this new research into improved

2 physician education and patient care.

3 (5) The Federal Government should develop re4 gional education and treatment centers on women’s

5 health to disseminate the information made available

6 by the National Institutes of Health and other Fed7 eral research efforts in women’s health.

8 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM FOR MULTIPUR9 POSE REGIONAL CENTERS ON WOMEN’S

10 HEALTH.

11 Part F of title IV of the Public Health Service Act

12 (42 U.S.C. 287d et seq.) is amended by adding at the end

13 the following section:

14 ‘‘SEC. 486C. MULTIPURPOSE REGIONAL CENTERS ON WOM15 EN’S HEALTH.

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Director of NIH, in con17 sultation with the Director of the Office, shall make grants

18 to, or enter into contracts with, public or nonprofit private

19 entities for the development and operation of centers to

20 carry out the activities described in subsection (c) regard21 ing women’s health conditions.

22 ‘‘(b) NUMBER OF CENTERS; REGIONAL CONSIDER23 ATIONS.—The Director of NIH shall, subject to the extent

24 of amounts made available in appropriations Acts, provide

25 for the development of 5 centers under subsection (a) and
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1 shall ensure, to the extent practicable, that such a center

2 is developed in each of the principal geographic regions

3 of the United States.

4 ‘‘(c) ACTIVITIES OF CENTERS.—

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to women’s

6 health conditions, each center developed under sub7 section (a) shall—

8 ‘‘(A) conduct basic research, and clinical

9 and other applied research;

10 ‘‘(B) develop curricula for training health

11 professionals and scientists;

12 ‘‘(C) conduct training programs for health

13 professionals and scientists;

14 ‘‘(D) develop model continuing education

15 programs for health professionals and sci16 entists;

17 ‘‘(E) disseminate information to health

18 professionals, scientists, and the public;

19 ‘‘(F) develop model programs for the deliv20 ery of health services to women, including, as

21 appropriate, programs specific to particular age

22 groups; and

23 ‘‘(G) in the case of women who are in the

24 medical profession (including women attending

25 schools of medicine), develop model programs
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1 for training the women in the skills necessary

2 for achieving positions of leadership in such

3 schools and in academic health centers.

4 ‘‘(2) STIPENDS REGARDING TRAINING; FEES

5 REGARDING CLINICAL RESEARCH SUBJECTS.—A cen6 ter may use funds provided under subsection (a) to

7 provide stipends for health professionals and sci8 entists enrolled in programs described in subpara9 graph (C) of paragraph (1), and to provide fees to

10 individuals serving as subjects in clinical trials con11 ducted under such paragraph.

12 ‘‘(d) COORDINATION OF INFORMATION.—The Direc13 tor of NIH shall, as appropriate, provide for the coordina14 tion of information among the centers assisted under sub15 section (a) and among the national research institutes.

16 ‘‘(e) STRUCTURE OF CENTERS.—Each center as17 sisted under subsection (a) shall use the facilities of a sin18 gle institution, or be formed from a consortium of cooper19 ating institutions, meeting such requirements as may be

20 prescribed by the Director of NIH.

21 ‘‘(f) DURATION OF SUPPORT.—Support of a center

22 under subsection (a) may be for a period not exceeding

23 5 years. Such period may be extended for one or more

24 additional periods not exceeding 5 years if the operations

25 of such center have been reviewed by an appropriate tech-
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1 nical and scientific peer review group established by the

2 Director of NIH and if such group has recommended to

3 the Director that such period should be extended.

4 ‘‘(g) LIMITATION ON SUPPORT PER CENTER.—The

5 Director of NIH may not, from amounts appropriated

6 under subsection (h), obligate more than $15,000,000 in

7 the aggregate for the development and operation of a cen8 ter under subsection (a).

9 ‘‘(h) AGGREGATE AUTHORIZATIONS OF APPROPRIA10 TIONS.—For the purpose of carrying out this section,

11 there is authorized to be appropriated $60,000,000 in the

12 aggregate for fiscal year 1995 and subsequent fiscal

13 years.’’.

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