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103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 22

Expressing the sense of the Congress with respect to contraception and

infertility.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JANUARY 25, 1993

Mrs. SCHROEDER (for herself and Ms. SNOWE) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and

Commerce

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Expressing the sense of the Congress with respect to

contraception and infertility.

Whereas the incidence in the United States of both unintended pregnancy and abortion is substantial and unacceptable;

Whereas there is a significant incidence of infertility in the

United States;

Whereas studies estimate that 31,800,000 women nationwide

are at risk of unintended pregnancy, and that, for a variety of reasons, 13 percent of these women are not using

any form of contraception;

Whereas there is a substantial need for the development of

new contraceptive drugs and devices, but only 1 private
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pharmaceutical company based in the United States is

conducting research toward such development;

Whereas, if a variety of safe and effective options with respect to contraception are widely available, significant

benefits for women and their families accrue, including a

reduction in the number of low-birthweight births and a

reduction in the number of premature births, leading to

a reduced incidence of maternal and infant mortality;

Whereas it is estimated that 1 out of 6 couples in the United

States is infertile or fails to conceive within 1 year of deciding to have a child;

Whereas the Centers for Disease Control estimates that 20

percent of cases of infertility in the United States are

caused by sexually transmitted diseases;

Whereas cases of infertility resulting from sexually transmitted diseases are the most preventable of such cases;

Whereas, with respect to the problems of contraception and

infertility, the obstacles to making an effective response

to such problems are many and include a lack of consistent funding, the political controversy concerning abortion,

the lengthy and complex procedures for the approval by

the Food and Drug Administration of new drugs and devices, the costs of liability insurance for research and for

the marketing of drugs and devices, and a shortage of

scientists in the relevant fields; and

Whereas family planning is universally recognized as a

human right: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate

2 concurring), That the Congress should—
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1 (1) establish a program of research for the de2 velopment of new and improved methods of contra3 ception and new and improved methods of diagnos4 ing and treating infertility, including the establish5 ment of research centers for such purposes;

6 (2) provide adequate long-term resources for

7 the program to ensure that the program is among

8 the principal Federal research priorities and that the

9 United States is a world leader in research with re10 spect to contraception and infertility;

11 (3) ensure that Federal programs with respect

12 to the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of sexu13 ally transmitted diseases adequately respond to the

14 role of such diseases in cases of infertility;

15 (4) ensure that the public is educated with re16 spect to contraception and infertility, including edu17 cation on new and improved drugs and devices;

18 (5) establish as Federal goals the development,

19 by the year 2010, of—

20 (A) improved barrier methods to protect

21 against unintended pregnancy and sexually

22 transmitted diseases;

23 (B) new methods of contraception for use

24 by men;
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1 (C) a vaccine-like drug for women that

2 prevents unintended pregnancy for a significant

3 period of time without disrupting the menstrual

4 cycle or causing adverse metabolic or cardio5 vascular effects; and

6 (D) new and improved techniques of diag7 nosing and treating infertility;

8 (6) require the Secretary of Health and Human

9 Services to take prompt action to reestablish the

10 Ethical Advisory Board (terminated in 1980) in

11 order to facilitate research with respect to infertility;

12 (7) review the policies and procedures of the

13 Food and Drug Administration to determine the ex14 tent to which the process of approving drugs and de15 vices for use by the public, especially with respect to

16 contraception and infertility, can be expedited with

17 a reasonable degree of safety, including consider18 ation of the role of conducting ongoing surveys and

19 studies of the effects on the public of drugs and de20 vices that have been so approved; and

21 (8) determine to what extent measures can be

22 implemented by public or private entities to resolve

23 liability issues regarding persons conducting re24 search into, or marketing, drugs and devices with re25 spect to contraception and infertility.
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