I 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4847 

To facilitate effective research on and treatment of neglected tropical diseases 

through coordinated domestic and international efforts. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 11, 2014 

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey (for himself, Mr. MEEKS, Mr. SALMON, and Mr. 

JOHNSON of Georgia) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 

the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Foreign Affairs and Financial Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 

provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To facilitate effective research on and treatment of neglected 

tropical diseases through coordinated domestic and international efforts. 

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 ‘‘End Neglected Trop5 ical Diseases Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

7 The table of contents of this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 


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Sec. 2. Table of contents. 

Sec. 3. Statement of policy. 

Sec. 4. Findings. 

Sec. 5. Definition. 

Sec. 6. Rule of construction. 

TITLE I—FOREIGN AFFAIRS 

Sec. 101. Expansion of USAID NTDs Program. 

Sec. 102. Actions by Department of State. 

Sec. 103. Multilateral development and health institutions. 

TITLE II—DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 

Sec. 201. Promoting efforts through interagency working groups and international forums. 

Sec. 202. Report on neglected tropical diseases in the United States. 

Sec. 203. Centers of excellence. 

Sec. 204. Panel on worm infection solutions. 

1 SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 

2 It is the policy of the United States to support a 

3 broad range of implementation and research and develop4 ment activities that work toward the achievement of cost5 effective and sustainable treatment, control and, where 

6 possible, elimination of neglected tropical diseases for the 

7 economic and social well-being for all people. 

8 SEC. 4. FINDINGS. 

9 Congress finds the following: 

10 (1) The World Health Organization (WHO) has 

11 identified 17 neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). 

12 Approximately two billion people—almost one-third 

13 of the world’s population—are at risk of contracting 

14 an NTD, and more than 1.4 billion people are cur15 rently afflicted with one or more NTDs. 

16 (2) In 2013, WHO adopted a comprehensive 

17 resolution on NTDs recognizing that increased naVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:23 Jun 13, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4847.IH H4847

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1 tional and international investments in prevention 

2 and control of neglected tropical diseases have suc3 ceeded in improving health and social well-being in 

4 many countries. 

5 (3) NTDs have an enormous impact in terms of 

6 disease burden and quality of life. NTDs cause the 

7 loss of up to 534,000 lives and 57 million disability8 adjusted life years each year. NTDs surpass both 

9 malaria and tuberculosis in causing greater loss of 

10 life-years to disability and premature death. Many 

11 NTDs cause disfigurement and disability, leading to 

12 stigma, social discrimination, and societal 

13 marginalization. 

14 (4) NTDs create an economic burden of billions 

15 of dollars through the loss of productivity and high 

16 costs of health care required for treatment. People 

17 afflicted by NTDs are less productive than their 

18 healthy counterparts. NTDs jeopardize the ability of 

19 people to attend work and school, or to produce at 

20 full capacity. For example, controlling one NTD, 

21 hookworm, in children can result in a 43-percent in22 crease in future wage earnings. 

23 (5) The social, economic, and health burden of 

24 NTDs falls primarily on low- and middle-income 

25 countries, where access to safe water, sanitation, 


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1 and health care is limited. At least 100 countries 

2 face two endemic NTD burdens, and 30 countries 

3 carry six or more endemic NTDs. 

4 (6) NTDs are not confined to the developing 

5 world, however. Several NTD outbreaks have been 

6 reported in the United States and other developed 

7 countries, especially among the poor. In the United 

8 States, NTDs disproportionately affect people living 

9 in poverty, and especially minorities, including up to 

10 2.8 million African-Americans with toxocariasis and 

11 300,000 or more people, mostly Hispanic-Americans, 

12 with Chagas disease. 

13 (7) Many NTDs can be controlled, prevented, 

14 and even eliminated using low-cost, effective, and 

15 feasible solutions. Understanding the economic bur16 den of NTDs on productivity and health care costs 

17 can help to assure governments and donors that the 

18 resources directed toward NTDs represent a good 

19 investment. 

20 (8) Research and development efforts are imme21 diately needed for all NTDs, especially those for 

22 which limited or no treatment currently exists. 

23 (9) Critical to developing robust NTD control 

24 strategies are epidemiological data that identify at25 risk populations, ensure appropriate treatment freVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:23 Jun 13, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4847.IH H4847

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1 quency, and inform decisions about when treatment 

2 can be reduced or stopped. 

3 (10) Of the 14 most common NTDs, roughly 

4 80 percent of infections are caused by soil-trans5 mitted helminths (STH) and schistosomiasis. STH 

6 are a group of three parasitic worms (roundworms, 

7 whipworms, and hookworms) that afflict more than 

8 one billion people worldwide, including 600 million 

9 school-age children, of whom more than 300 million 

10 suffer from severe morbidity. Schistosomiasis is an11 other helminth infection affecting at least 200 mil12 lion people in developing countries, but some esti13 mates indicate that the true number of people af14 fected may be double or even triple that number. 

15 (11) The main health problems caused by STH 

16 are related to their negative effect on childhood nu17 tritional status, which can cause stunting and wast18 ing. For example, STH infection may lead to ane19 mia, malabsorption of nutrients, loss of appetite, 

20 nausea, abdominal pain, diarrhea, and reduced food 

21 intake. When such health problems are experienced 

22 in early childhood, a peak growth and development 

23 period, the mental and physical damage—and loss of 

24 future productivity and wage-earning potential—will 

25 likely be irreversible. Schistosomiasis causes endVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:23 Jun 13, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4847.IH H4847

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1 organ damage to the urinary tract, female genital 

2 tract, liver and intestines. It also results in chronic 

3 health conditions in children. 

4 (12) STH and schistosomiasis are also particu5 larly detrimental to the health of women of repro6 ductive age and pregnant women. Their underlying 

7 poor iron status makes these women most suscep8 tible to developing anemia. Iron deficiency anemia 

9 resulting from hookworm infection during pregnancy 

10 has been linked to poor pregnancy outcomes such as 

11 prematurity, low birth weight, and impaired lacta12 tion. Female genital schistosmiasis may be one of 

13 the most common gynecologic conditions in Africa 

14 leading to genital pain, itching, and bleeding and 

15 markedly increased susceptibility to HIV/AIDS. 

16 (13) Fortunately, there is a simple, cost-effec17 tive solution to STH and schistosomiasis infections: 

18 single-dose deworming pills that can be safely ad19 ministered once or twice annually to those at risk. 

20 Pharmaceutical companies have committed to donate 

21 the drugs needed to treat all at-risk, school-age chil22 dren in developing countries. Regular administration 

23 of deworming pills reduces morbidity associated with 

24 STH and schistosomiasis infections by reducing 

25 prevalence and transmission rates. 


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1 (14) The benefits of deworming are immediate 

2 and enduring. A rigorous randomized controlled trial 

3 has shown school-based deworming treatment to re4 duce school absenteeism by 25 percent. School-based 

5 deworming also benefits young siblings and other 

6 children who live nearby but are too young to be 

7 treated, leading to large cognitive improvements 

8 equivalent to half a year of schooling. 

9 SEC. 5. DEFINITION. 

10 In this Act, the term ‘‘neglected tropical diseases’’ or 

11 ‘‘NTDs’’— 

12 (1) means infections caused by pathogens, in13 cluding viruses, bacteria, protozoa, and helminths 

14 that disproportionately impact individuals living in 

15 extreme poverty, especially in developing countries; 

16 and 

17 (2) includes— 

18 (A) Buruli ulcer (Mycobacterium Ulcerans 

19 infection); 

20 (B) Chagas disease; 

21 (C) dengue or severe dengue fever; 

22 (D) dracunculiasis (Guinea worm disease); 

23 (E) echinococcosis; 

24 (F) foodborne trematodiases; 


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1 (G) human African trypanosomiasis (sleep2 ing sickness); 

3 (H) leishmaniasis; 

4 (I) leprosy; 

5 (J) lymphatic filariasis (elephantiasis); 

6 (K) onchocerciasis (river blindness); 

7 (L) rabies; 

8 (M) schistosomiasis; 

9 (N) soil-transmitted helminthiases (STH) 

10 (round worm, whip worm, and hook worm); 

11 (O) taeniasis/cysticercosis; 

12 (P) trachoma; and 

13 (Q) yaws (endemic treponematoses). 

14 SEC. 6. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

15 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to increase au16 thorizations of appropriations for the United States Agen17 cy for International Development or authorizations of ap18 propriations for the Department of Health and Human 

19 Services. 

20 TITLE I—FOREIGN AFFAIRS 

21 SEC. 101. EXPANSION OF USAID NTDS PROGRAM. 

22 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

23 (1) Since fiscal year 2006, the United States 

24 Government has been an essential leading partner in 

25 advancing control and elimination efforts for seven 


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1 targeted neglected tropical diseases: lymphatic fila2 riasis (elephantiasis), onchocerciasis (river blind3 ness), schistosomiasis, soil-transmitted helminthiases 

4 (STH) (round worm, whip worm, and hook worm), 

5 and trachoma. Additional information suggests that 

6 such efforts could also produce collateral benefits for 

7 at least three other NTDs: foodborne trematodiases, 

8 rabies, and yaws (endemic treponematoses). 

9 (2) The United States Agency for International 

10 Development (USAID) Neglected Tropical Diseases 

11 Program has made important and substantial con12 tributions to the global fight to control and eliminate 

13 the seven most common NTDs. Leveraging more 

14 than $6.7 billion in donated medicines, USAID has 

15 supported the distribution of more than one billion 

16 treatments in 25 countries across Africa, Asia, and 

17 Latin America and the Caribbean. 

18 (3) United States Government leadership has 

19 been instrumental in maintaining the global fight 

20 against NTDs and is a partner in the 2012 London 

21 Declaration on NTDs, which represents a new, co22 ordinated push to accelerate progress toward elimi23 nating or controlling 10 neglected tropical diseases 

24 by 2020. 


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1 (4) The USAID NTDs Program is a clear ex2 ample of a successful public-private partnership be3 tween the Government and the private sector and 

4 should be judiciously expanded. 

5 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con6 gress that the USAID NTDs Program (as in effect on 

7 the date of the enactment of this Act) should be modified 

8 as follows: 

9 (1) Provide rapid impact package treatments to 

10 as many individuals suffering from NTDs or at risk 

11 of acquiring NTDs as logistically feasible. 

12 (2) Better integrate rapid impact package 

13 treatments with programs to control and eliminate 

14 HIV/AIDS and malaria, including— 

15 (A) by coordinating HIV/AIDS programs 

16 with the control of female genital schistoso17 miasis, now revealed as one of Africa’s most im18 portant co-factors in its AIDS epidemic; and 

19 (B) by coordinating malaria programs with 

20 programs to control schistosomiasis and hook 

21 worm—together these diseases produce pro22 found and severe anemia. 

23 (3) Establish school-based NTD programs to 

24 provide an opportunity to reach large numbers of 

25 school-age children who require treatments for 


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1 NTDs, including rapid impact package treatments 

2 as feasible and at very low cost. 

3 (4) For other NTDs, such as human African 

4 trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness), chagas disease, 

5 leishmaniasis, and dengue fever, develop new ap6 proaches to reach the goals relating to the elimi7 nation of NTDs as set forth in the World Health 

8 Organization (WHO) NTD Roadmap. 

9 (c) EXPANSION OF PROGRAM.—The Administrator of 

10 USAID shall expand the USAID NTDs Program (as in 

11 effect on the date of the enactment of this Act) as follows: 

12 (1) Carry out monitoring and evaluation to pro13 vide accurate measurements to inform future NTD 

14 control and elimination strategies. 

15 (2) Coordinate with USAID development sec16 tors, such as sectors relating to water and sanita17 tion, hygiene, food security and nutrition, and edu18 cation (both primary and preprimary), to establish 

19 programs that address NTDs and advance the goals 

20 of the 2012 London Declaration on NTDs. 

21 (3) Include morbidity management in treatment 

22 plans for high-burden NTDs, such as lymphatic fila23 riasis (elephantiasis). 

24 (4) Include NTDs that are recognized as high25 burden diseases in the Global Burden of Disease 


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1 Study 2010, including foodborne trematodiases, 

2 human African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness), 

3 chagas disease, leishmaniasis, and dengue fever and 

4 related arbovirus infections. 

5 (5) Include research and development, con6 sistent with other USAID disease prevention pro7 grams, to ensure the tools required for elimination 

8 of these diseases are available, such as drugs, 

9 diagnostics, vaccines. 

10 (d) RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.— 

11 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator of 

12 USAID shall establish a research and development 

13 program within the USAID NTDs Program (as in 

14 effect on the date of the enactment of this Act). 

15 (2) PRIORITY.—The research and development 

16 program shall focus on the prevention and control of 

17 those diseases with the highest need for new treat18 ments, diagnostics, and vaccines, including soil19 transmitted helminthiases (STH) (round worm, whip 

20 worm, and hook worm), schistosomiasis, chagas dis21 ease, human African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sick22 ness), leishmaniasis, and dengue fever and other 

23 arbovirus infections. 


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1 SEC. 102. ACTIONS BY DEPARTMENT OF STATE. 

2 (a) OFFICE OF THE GLOBAL AIDS COORDINATOR.— 

3 Section 1(f)(2)(B)(ii) of the State Department Basic Au4 thorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2651a(f)(2)(B)(ii)) is 

5 amended by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(XIV) NEGLECTED TROPICAL

7 DISEASES.— 

8 ‘‘(aa) IN GENERAL.—Ensur9 ing coordination of activities of 

10 the United States (including 

11 funding) relating to combatting 

12 HIV/AIDS with activities of the 

13 United States (including funding) 

14 relating to combatting neglected 

15 tropical diseases to include the 

16 control and elimination of ne17 glected tropical diseases, particu18 larly in countries and regions 

19 that are highly endemic for fe20 male genital schistosomiasis. 

21 ‘‘(bb) DEFINITION.—In this 

22 subclause, the term ‘neglected 

23 tropical diseases’ has the mean24 ing given the term in section 5 of 

25 the End Neglected Tropical Dis26 eases Act.’’. 


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1 (b) GLOBAL FUND.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State 

3 should seek to engage the Global Fund in discus4 sions on whether to expand the authority of the 

5 Global Fund for the control and elimination of ne6 glected tropical diseases. 

7 (2) GLOBAL FUND.—In this subsection, the 

8 term ‘‘Global Fund’’ means the public-private part9 nership known as the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, 

10 Tuberculosis and Malaria established pursuant to 

11 Article 80 of the Swiss Civil Code. 

12 (c) G–20 COUNTRIES.—The Secretary of State, act13 ing through the Office of Global Health Diplomacy, should 

14 engage G–20 countries to significantly increase their role 

15 in the control and elimination of neglected tropical dis16 eases, particularly Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indo17 nesia, Mexico, the Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia, and 

18 South Africa. 

19 SEC. 103. MULTILATERAL DEVELOPMENT AND HEALTH IN20 STITUTIONS. 

21 (a) CONGRESSIONAL FINDING.—Congress finds that 

22 the treatment of high burden neglected tropical diseases, 

23 including school-based deworming programs, has proven 

24 to be a highly cost-effective education intervention and 

25 schools can serve as the best delivery mechanism for 


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1 reaching large numbers of children with safe treatment for 

2 soil-transmitted helminthiases (STH) (round worm, whip 

3 worm, and hook worm) in particular. 

4 (b) UNITED NATIONS.—The President shall direct 

5 the United States permanent representative to the United 

6 Nations to use the voice, vote, and influence of the United 

7 States to urge the World Health Organization, the United 

8 Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organiza9 tion, and the United Nations Development Programme to 

10 take the actions described in subsection (d). 

11 (c) WORLD BANK INSTITUTE.—The President shall 

12 direct the United States Executive Director at the Inter13 national Bank for Reconstruction and Development to use 

14 the voice, vote, and influence of the United States to urge 

15 the World Bank Institute to take the actions described 

16 in subsection (d). 

17 (d) ACTIONS DESCRIBED.—The actions described in 

18 this subsection are the following: 

19 (1) Ensure the dissemination of best practices 

20 and programming on NTDs to governments and 

21 make data accessible to practitioners in an open and 

22 timely fashion. 

23 (2) Highlight impacts of school-based 

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1 cation, emphasizing the cost-effectiveness of such 

2 programs. 

3 (3) Encourage governments to implement 

4 deworming campaigns at the national level. 

5 (4) Designate a portion of grant funds of the 

6 institutions to deworming initiatives and cross-sec7 toral collaboration with water and sanitation and hy8 giene efforts and nutrition or education program9 ming. 

10 (5) Encourage accurate monitoring and evalua11 tion of NTD programs, including deworming pro12 grams. 

13 (6) Engage governments in cross-border initia14 tives for the treatment, control, prevention, and 

15 elimination of NTDs, and assist in developing 

16 transnational agreements, when necessary. 

17 TITLE II—DEPARTMENT OF 

18 HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 

19 SEC. 201. PROMOTING EFFORTS THROUGH INTERAGENCY 

20 WORKING GROUPS AND INTERNATIONAL FO21 RUMS. 

22 The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall 

23 continue to promote the need for robust programs and ac24 tivities to diagnose, prevent, control, and treat neglected 

25 tropical diseases— 


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1 (1) through interagency working groups on 

2 health; and 

3 (2) through relevant international forums on 

4 behalf of the United States, including the post-2015 

5 United Nations development agenda. 

6 SEC. 202. REPORT ON NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES IN 

7 THE UNITED STATES. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 12 months after 

9 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health 

10 and Human Services, acting through the Director of the 

11 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, shall submit 

12 to the Congress a report on neglected tropical diseases in 

13 the United States. 

14 (b) CONTENTS.—The report required by this section 

15 shall— 

16 (1) assess the epidemiology of, impact of, and 

17 appropriate funding required to address neglected 

18 tropical diseases in the United States; and 

19 (2) include the information necessary— 

20 (A) to guide future health policy with re21 spect to such diseases; 

22 (B) to accurately evaluate the current 

23 state of knowledge concerning such diseases; 

24 and 

25 (C) to define gaps in such knowledge. 


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1 SEC. 203. CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE. 

2 Part P of title III of the Public Health Service Act 

3 is amended by inserting after section 399V–5 of such Act 

4 (42 U.S.C. 280g–16) the following: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 399V–6. NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASE CENTERS OF 

6 EXCELLENCE. 

7 ‘‘(a) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS AND GRANTS.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting 

9 through the Director of the National Institute of Al10 lergy and Infectious Diseases or the Administrator 

11 of the Health Resources and Services Administra12 tion, as appropriate, may enter into cooperative 

13 agreements with, and make grants to, public or pri14 vate nonprofit entities to pay all or part of the cost 

15 of planning, establishing, or strengthening, and pro16 viding basic operating support for, one or more cen17 ters of excellence for research into, training in, and 

18 development of diagnosis, prevention, control, and 

19 treatment methods for neglected tropical diseases. 

20 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible for a cooper21 ative agreement or grant under this section, an enti22 ty must— 

23 ‘‘(A) have demonstrated expertise in re24 search on, and the epidemiology and surveil25 lance of, the major neglected tropical diseases 

26 that are endemic to the United States, such as 


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1 Chagas disease, dengue, leishmaniasis, and 

2 West Nile virus infection, and helminth infec3 tions; and 

4 ‘‘(B) participate in one or more not-for5 profit product development partnerships. 

6 ‘‘(b) POLICIES.—A cooperative agreement or grant 

7 under paragraph (1) shall be entered into or awarded in 

8 accordance with policies established by the Director of the 

9 National Institutes of Health or the Health Resources and 

10 Services Administration, as applicable. 

11 ‘‘(c) COORDINATION WITH OTHER INSTITUTES.— 

12 The Secretary shall coordinate the activities under this 

13 section with similar activities conducted by other national 

14 research institutes, centers, and agencies of the National 

15 Institutes of Health to the extent that such institutes, cen16 ters, and agencies have responsibilities that are related to 

17 neglected tropical diseases. 

18 ‘‘(d) USES OF FUNDS.—A cooperative agreement or 

19 grant under subsection (a) may be used for— 

20 ‘‘(1) staffing, administrative, and other basic 

21 operating costs, including such patient care costs as 

22 are required for research; 

23 ‘‘(2) clinical training, including training for al24 lied health professionals, continuing education for 

25 health professionals and allied health professions 


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1 personnel, and information programs for the public 

2 with respect to neglected tropical diseases; and 

3 ‘‘(3) research and development programs. 

4 ‘‘(e) PERIOD OF SUPPORT; ADDITIONAL PERIODS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Support of a center of ex6 cellence under this section may be for a period of 

7 not more than 5 years. 

8 ‘‘(2) EXTENSIONS.—The period specified in 

9 paragraph (1) may be extended by the Secretary for 

10 additional periods of not more than 5 years if— 

11 ‘‘(A) the operations of the center of excel12 lence involved have been reviewed by an appro13 priate technical and scientific peer review 

14 group; and 

15 ‘‘(B) such group has recommended to the 

16 Secretary that such period should be extended. 

17 ‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

18 ‘‘(1) The term ‘neglected tropical disease’ has 

19 the meaning given to that term in section 5 of the 

20 End Neglected Tropical Diseases Act. 

21 ‘‘(2) The term ‘product development partner22 ship’ means a partnership to bring together public 

23 and private sector researchers to develop new, or im24 prove on current, global health tools, such as drugs, 


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1 diagnostics, insecticides, vaccines, and vector man2 agement strategies— 

3 ‘‘(A) that are for neglected tropical dis4 eases; and 

5 ‘‘(B) for which there is generally no profit6 able market. 

7 ‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—To 

8 carry out this section, there are authorized to be appro9 priated such sums as may be necessary for each of the 

10 fiscal years 2015 through 2019.’’. 

11 SEC. 204. PANEL ON WORM INFECTION SOLUTIONS. 

12 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Director of the National 

13 Institutes of Health, in consultation with the Adminis14 trator of the United States Agency for International De15 velopment, shall establish a panel to conduct an evaluation 

16 of issues relating to worm infections, including potential 

17 solutions such as deworming medicines (in this section re18 ferred to as the ‘‘panel’’). 

19 (b) STRATEGIES.—The panel shall develop rec20 ommendations for strategies for solutions with respect 

21 to— 

22 (1) repeat infections; 

23 (2) vector control; 

24 (3) clean water solutions; 


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1 (4) identifying incentives to encourage basic re2 search for less toxic, more effective medicines; and 

3 (5) improving the success and cost efficiency of 

4 current programs in these areas, based on a thor5 ough scan of initiatives already underway in both 

6 the public and private sectors. 

7 (c) APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS.—The Director of 

8 the National Institutes of Health shall appoint as mem9 bers of the panel individuals from the public and private 

10 sectors who are knowledgeable about or affected by worm 

11 infections, including— 

12 (1) at least 2 representatives of nongovern13 mental organizations; 

14 (2) at least 2 representatives of private industry 

15 involved in the development of de-worming medica16 tions; 

17 (3) at least 2 representatives from academia; 

18 and 

19 (4) representatives of industries relating to 

20 sanitation, clean water, and vector control. 

21 (d) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

22 of the enactment of this Act, the panel shall submit to 

23 Congress and the Director of the National Institutes of 

24 Health a report on its findings and recommended strate25 gies, including recommendations for such administrative 


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1 action and legislation as the panel determines to be appro2 priate. 

3 (e) TERMINATION.—The panel shall terminate not 

4 later than 6 months after submitting the report required 

5 by subsection (d). 

Æ 


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