I 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1440 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to establish an Office of Men’s 

Health. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 9, 2007 

Mr. FOSSELLA (for himself and Mr. HILL) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to establish an 

Office of Men’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 ‘‘Men’s Health Act of 

5 2007’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds as follows: 

8 (1) Risks to the health and well-being of Amer9 ica’s men are on the rise due to a lack of education, 


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1 awareness, and pursuit of preventive screening and 

2 care. 

3 (2) While this health crisis is of particular con4 cern to men, it is also a concern for women regard5 ing their fathers, husbands, sons, and brothers. 

6 (3) Men’s health is important to employers who 

7 pay the costs of medical care and lose productive 

8 employees. 

9 (4) Men’s health is a concern to Federal and 

10 State governments which absorb the enormous costs 

11 of premature death and disability, including the 

12 costs of caring for dependents left behind. 

13 (5) The life expectancy gap between men and 

14 women has increased from one year in 1920 to al15 most six years in 2002. 

16 (6) Prostate cancer is the most frequently diag17 nosed cancer in the United States among men, ac18 counting for 33 percent of all cancer cases. 

19 (7) An estimated 230,000 men will be newly di20 agnosed with prostate cancer this year alone, and 

21 approximately 30,000 will die. 

22 (8) Prostate cancer rates increase sharply with 

23 age, and more than 75 percent of such cases are di24 agnosed in men age 65 and older. 


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1 (9) The incidence of prostate cancer and the re2 sulting mortality rate in African American men is 

3 twice that in white men. 

4 (10) It is estimated that in 2007, 115,000 men 

5 will be diagnosed with lung cancer, and another 

6 90,000 of America’s men will die from it. 

7 (11) Over 8,000 men, ages 15 to 40, will be di8 agnosed this year with testicular cancer, and 390 of 

9 these men will die of this disease in 2007. A com10 mon reason for delay in treatment of this disease is 

11 a delay in seeking medical attention after discov12 ering a testicular mass. 

13 (12) According to the Census Bureau, by the 

14 time men and women reach age 65, the ratio of men 

15 to women reduces to 85 to 100. The growing dis16 parity in this statistic suggests that, among other 

17 factors, the declining health of men increases the 

18 risk of women entering retirement age as widows. 

19 (13) Studies show that women are 100 percent 

20 more likely than men to visit a doctor, have regular 

21 physician check-ups, and obtain preventive screening 

22 tests for serious diseases. 

23 (14) Appropriate use of tests such as prostate 

24 specific antigen (PSA) exams and blood pressure, 

25 blood sugar, and cholesterol screens, in conjunction 


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1 with clinical exams and self-testing, can result in the 

2 early detection of many problems and in increased 

3 survival rates. 

4 (15) Educating men, their families, and health 

5 care providers about the importance of early detec6 tion of male health problems can reduce mortality 

7 rates for male-specific disease and improve the over8 all health and well-being of America’s men. 

9 (16) Recent scientific studies show that regular 

10 medical exams, preventive screenings, regular exer11 cise, and healthy eating habits can help save lives. 

12 (17) Establishing an Office of Men’s Health is 

13 needed to investigate these findings and take such 

14 further actions as may be needed to promote men’s 

15 health. 

16 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE OF MEN’S HEALTH. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title XVII of the Public Health 

18 Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300u et seq.) is amended by adding 

19 at the end the following section: 

20 ‘‘OFFICE OF MEN’S HEALTH

21 ‘‘SEC. 1711. (a) The Secretary shall establish within 

22 the Department of Health and Human Services an office 

23 to be known as the Office of Men’s Health (in this section 

24 referred to as the ‘Office’), which shall be headed by a 

25 director appointed by the Secretary. 


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1 ‘‘(b) The Secretary, acting through the Director of 

2 the Office, shall— 

3 ‘‘(1) conduct or support programs and activities 

4 to improve the state of men’s health in the United 

5 States; and 

6 ‘‘(2) provide for consultation among the offices 

7 and agencies of the Department of Health and 

8 Human Services for the purpose of coordinating pro9 grams and activities relating to men’s health.’’. 

10 (b) REPORT.—Not later than two years after the date 

11 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and 

12 Human Services, acting through the Director of the Office 

13 of Men’s Health, shall submit to the Congress a report 

14 describing the activities of such Office, including findings 

15 that the Director has made regarding men’s health. 

Æ 


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