IV 
114TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 437 
Designating September 2015 as ‘‘Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Month’’. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 24, 2015 
Mr. PAULSEN (for himself and Mr. COHEN) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
RESOLUTION 
Designating September 2015 as ‘‘Pulmonary Fibrosis 
Awareness Month’’. 
Whereas pulmonary fibrosis is a debilitating and ultimately 
fatal condition that causes progressive scarring in the 
lungs and generally has no known definitive cause; 
Whereas, as many as 200,000 individuals in the United 
States are known to suffer from pulmonary fibrosis, the 
majority of whom are between the ages of 50 and 75; 
Whereas the average survival rate for the idiopathic form of 
pulmonary fibrosis is just 2.8 years and up to 80 percent 
of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis patients die within 5 
years of diagnosis; 
Whereas pulmonary fibrosis takes the lives of 40,000 individ-
uals in the United States each year, approximately 1 
death every 13 minutes; 
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Whereas many patients with pulmonary fibrosis are 
misdiagnosed for 1 year or longer after the patients are 
presenting with pulmonary fibrosis symptoms; 
Whereas, as of September 2015, there are no biomarkers for 
screening and testing for pulmonary fibrosis; 
Whereas a cure or drug to extend life or improve symptoms 
of pulmonary fibrosis does not exist; 
Whereas the symptoms of pulmonary fibrosis vary from per-
son to person and include shortness of breath, a dry 
cough, fatigue, weight loss, and aching muscles and 
joints; 
Whereas volunteers, researchers, caregivers, and medical pro-
fessionals are working to improve the quality of life for 
individuals with pulmonary fibrosis and the families of 
those individuals; 
Whereas developing more effective treatments for pulmonary 
fibrosis and providing access to quality care to individuals 
with pulmonary fibrosis requires increased research, edu-
cation, and community support services; and 
Whereas September 2015 would be an appropriate month to 
designate as ‘‘Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Month’’: 
Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) supports the designation of ‘‘Pulmonary Fi-
brosis Awareness Month’’; 
(2) supports the goals and ideals of ‘‘Pul-
monary Fibrosis Awareness Month’’; 
(3) continues to support more robust and accel-
erated research to develop more effective treatments 
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for pulmonary fibrosis and to ultimately find a cure 
for the disease; 
(4) recognizes the courage and contributions of 
individuals with pulmonary fibrosis who participate 
in vital clinical trials to advance the knowledge of 
the disease; and 
(5) commends the dedication of organizations, 
volunteers, researchers, and millions of individuals in 
the United States and abroad working to improve 
the quality of life for individuals with pulmonary fi-
brosis and the families of those individuals. 
Æ 
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