IV 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 192 

Supporting the goals and ideals of ‘‘National STD Awareness Month’’. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 26, 2013 

Ms. LEE of California (for herself, Mr. RANGEL, Ms. NORTON, Ms. CLARKE, 

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, and Mr. MCGOVERN) submitted 

the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy 

and Commerce 

RESOLUTION 

Supporting the goals and ideals of ‘‘National STD Awareness 

Month’’. 

Whereas sexually transmitted infections (STIs) (also known 

as sexually transmitted diseases, or STDs) are a major 

public health challenge that pose a significant burden in 

the United States both in economic and human terms; 

Whereas the United States has the highest rate of STIs in 

the industrialized world, with an estimated 20,000,000 

new cases occurring each year, and almost half of those 

infections occurring in young people between the ages of 

15 to 24; 

Whereas all people in the United States have an interest in 

STIs because every community is impacted and everyone 


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pays for the cost of these infections, either directly or indirectly; 

Whereas, according to the Centers for Disease Control and 

Prevention (CDC), STIs impose a tremendous economic 

burden on the United States, with direct medical costs as 

high as $17,000,000,000 per year; 

Whereas the CDC estimates that rates of Chlamydia infection 

among adolescents increased from 2010 to 2011, especially among adolescents between the ages of 20 and 24; 

Whereas in 2011, the rate of Chlamydia among AfricanAmerican females between the ages of 15 and 19 was almost 6 times that of their White counterparts; 

Whereas in 2010, CDC data indicated that 1 in 6 people in 

the United States between the ages of 14 and 49 years 

old were infected with the Herpes Simplex virus Type 2, 

a lifelong and incurable infection, and that African-American women 14 to 49 years old were the most affected 

group, with a prevalence rate of 48 percent; 

Whereas poverty and lack of access to quality health care exacerbate the rate of infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and other STIs; 

Whereas men who have sex with men (MSM) continue to be 

disproportionately impacted by STIs, accounting for 72 

percent of all syphilis cases in 2011 as compared to only 

4 percent of such cases in 2000; 

Whereas racial disparities in rates of STIs are among the 

worst health disparities in the Nation for any health condition; 

Whereas most STIs have been associated with increased risk 

of HIV transmission and are likely contributing to the 

ongoing HIV epidemic in the United States; 


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Whereas the CDC also reports that the two most common 

STIs among young women are HPV, with 18 percent infected, and Chlamydia, with 6 percent of young women 

between the ages of 15 and 19 infected; 

Whereas the long-term health effects of these STIs are especially severe for women and include infertility and cervical cancer; 

Whereas vaccination, screening, and early treatment can prevent some of the most devastating effects of STIs; 

Whereas high STI infection rates in the United States demonstrate the need for better ways to reach those most at 

risk of infection; 

Whereas the CDC recommends annual Chlamydia screenings 

for sexually active women 25 years of age and younger; 

Whereas the CDC also recommends HPV vaccination for 

girls, boys and young women between the ages of 11 and 

21 for men and 26 for women, as well as anyone who is 

immunocompromised (including living with HIV/AIDS) 

until age 26; 

Whereas the CDC recommends screening for HIV, syphilis, 

Chlamydia, and gonorrhea at least once a year for all 

sexually active MSM; 

Whereas Chlamydia can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease, 

chronic pelvic pain, infertility, and tubular pregnancies, 

which can affect a woman’s health and well-being 

throughout her lifetime; 

Whereas STIs, including HIV/AIDS, can be transmitted from 

infected mothers to infants during childbirth and can 

cause severe health consequences in these infants; 


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Whereas STIs often cause social stigma and may have a serious psychological impact among those who are infected; 

Whereas programs that provide comprehensive and medically 

accurate health information and screening and treatment 

services can help people protect themselves against STIs, 

including through a variety of Federal programs such as 

Title X of the Public Health Service Act and the CDC’s 

STD prevention programs; 

Whereas school-based STI screening programs have been 

highly successful where implemented and are effective at 

preventing the spread of STIs among adolescents; 

Whereas the sexual and reproductive health needs of men 

must be more thoroughly recognized and better addressed 

by the public health and medical provider community in 

order to more effectively combat the spread of STIs; 

Whereas STD programs in State and local health departments that are funded through the CDC’s Division of 

STD Prevention are the Nation’s frontline defense 

against the spread of STIs; 

Whereas STI screening, vaccination, and other prevention 

strategies for sexually active women should be among the 

highest public health priorities; and 

Whereas the CDC observes April as ‘‘National STD Awareness Month’’: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) supports the goals and ideals of ‘‘National 

3 STD Awareness Month’’; 

4 (2) encourages the Federal Government, States, 

5 localities, and nonprofit organizations to observe the 


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1 month with appropriate programs and activities, 

2 with the goal of increasing public knowledge of the 

3 risks of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and 

4 protecting people of all ages; 

5 (3) recognizes the human toll of STIs and the 

6 importance of making the prevention, diagnosis, and 

7 treatment of STIs an urgent public health priority; 

8 and 

9 (4) calls on all people in the United States to 

10 learn about STIs and the prevention approaches rec11 ommended for them and encourages all sexually ac12 tive individuals to get tested for STIs and to seek 

13 appropriate care if they are infected. 

Æ 


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