Presidential Documents

Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 171 / Wednesday, September 6, 2023 / Presidential Documents 60877 

Proclamation 10615 of August 31, 2023 

National Sickle Cell Awareness Month, 2023 

By the President of the United States of America 

A Proclamation 

During National Sickle Cell Awareness Month, we recognize the perseverance 

and strength of the community of people living with this disease and recommit to developing more effective treatments. 

Approximately 100,000 Americans have Sickle Cell Disease (SCD)—a group 

of inherited red blood cell disorders that can cause acute, chronic pain 

and serious health complications, including infections, strokes, organ damage, 

vision problems, and serious fatigue. Living with SCD often means putting 

the goals and plans of everyday life on hold to accommodate the demands 

of the disease, enduring frequent unplanned hospital stays and struggling 

to pay for costly treatments not covered by insurance. 

There is no widely available cure for SCD. While bone marrow and stem 

cell transplants can work for some people with SCD, low donor availability 

and treatment-related complications put those options out of reach for many 

living with the disease. Although SCD affects people of all backgrounds, 

it disproportionately affects Black and Hispanic Americans. Combined with 

the documented disparities in treatment and care, people living with SCD 

often lack access to specialized care, treatment, and information about the 

disease, and they face barriers to receiving pain management and treatment 

support. 

That is why my Administration is working tirelessly to close these health 

disparities and help deliver the care SCD patients and their families deserve. 

We are working with State, territorial, and local governments, nonprofits, 

and private sector partners to make that happen. The Centers for Disease 

Control and Prevention’s Sickle Cell Data Collection program is gathering 

more comprehensive information on the experiences of SCD patients, which 

will inform new treatments and health care services. The Centers for Medicare 

& Medicaid Services is developing a Cell and Gene Therapy Access Model, 

which would help Medicaid beneficiaries gain access to potentially lifechanging, high-cost specialty drugs for illnesses like sickle cell disease. 

The Health Resources and Services Administration is assisting with early 

identification and treatment of SCD and helping community-based organizations and clinics conduct testing, counseling, and education. The Food and 

Drug Administration has approved new drug therapies that help people 

with SCD manage their pain, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) 

is funding clinical trials to test new advancements in the alleviation of 

chronic pain for those living with SCD. NIH is also researching possible 

personalized treatment approaches for SCD-associated pain. And through 

its ‘‘Cure Sickle Cell Initiative,’’ we are accelerating the development of 

effective and accessible genetic therapies that will help cure SCD once 

and for all. 

This month, we acknowledge all those living with SCD and the many 

health and medical professionals working to find new treatments and a 

cure for this disease. May we honor the progress we have made together 

and strengthen our resolve in finding a cure for SCD. 

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States 

of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution 


lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with FR_PREZDOC5
60878 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 171 / Wednesday, September 6, 2023 / Presidential Documents 

and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 2023 

as National Sickle Cell Awareness Month. I call upon the people of the 

United States to learn more about Sickle Cell Disease and the progress 

we are making to reduce the burden of this disease on our fellow Americans. 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day 

of August, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-three, and of 

the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and 

forty-eighth. 

[FR Doc. 2023–19345 

Filed 9–5–23; 8:45 am] 

Billing code 3395–F3–P 


lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with FR_PREZDOC5BIDEN.EPS</GPH>