IB 
Union Calendar No. 8
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 398
[Report No. 108–14] 
To revise and extend the Birth Defects Prevention Act of 1998. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 28, 2003
Mr. FERGUSON (for himself, Mr. DINGELL, Mr. BROWN of Ohio, and Mr. 
STUPAK) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Energy and Commerce 
FEBRUARY 13, 2003
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 
[Insert the part printed in italic] 
A BILL 
To revise and extend the Birth Defects Prevention Act of 
1998.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Birth Defects and De-
velopmental Disabilities Prevention Act of 2003’’.
SEC. 2. NATIONAL CENTER ON BIRTH DEFECTS AND DE-
VELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES. 
Section 317C of the Public Health Service Act (42 
U.S.C. 247b–4) is amended—
(1) in subsection (a)(2)—
(A) in subparagraph (A)—
(i) by striking ‘‘and developmental 
disabilities’’ and inserting ‘‘, developmental 
disabilities, and disabilities and health’’; 
and 
(ii) by striking ‘‘subsection (d)(2)’’ 
and inserting ‘‘subsection (c)(2)’’; 
(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking 
‘‘and’’ at the end; 
(C) in subparagraph (C), by striking the 
period and inserting a semicolon; and 
(D) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(D) to conduct research on and to pro-
mote the prevention of such defects and disabil-
ities, and secondary health conditions among in-
dividuals with disabilities; and 
‘‘(E) to support a National Spina Bifida 
Program to prevent and reduce suffering from 
the Nation’s most common permanently dis-
abling birth defect.’’; 
(2) by striking subsection (b);
(3) in subsection (d)—
(A) by striking paragraph (1) and insert-
ing the following: 
‘‘(1) contains information regarding the inci-
dence and prevalence of birth defects, developmental 
disabilities, and the health status of individuals with 
disabilities and the extent to which these conditions 
have contributed to the incidence and prevalence of 
infant mortality and affected quality of life;’’; 
(B) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘, devel-
opmental disabilities, and secondary health con-
ditions among individuals with disabilities’’ 
after ‘‘defects’’; 
(C) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 
the end; 
(D) by redesignating paragraph (5) as 
paragraph (7); and 
(E) by inserting after paragraph (4) the 
following: 
‘‘(5) contains information on the incidence and 
prevalence of individuals living with birth defects 
and disabilities or developmental disabilities, infor-
mation on the health status of individuals with dis-
abilities, information on any health disparities expe-
rienced by such individuals, and recommendations
for improving the health and wellness and quality of 
life of such individuals; 
‘‘(6) contains a summary of recommendations 
from all birth defects research conferences sponsored 
by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 
including conferences related to spina bifida; and’’; 
(4) in subsection (e)—
(A) by inserting ‘‘, including section 444 of 
the General Education Provisions Act,’’ after 
‘‘privacy of information’’; and 
(B) by inserting before the period at the 
end of the second sentence the following: ‘‘, ex-
cept that the Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention shall have access to information 
under section 444(b)(1)(F) of such Act solely 
for purposes of carrying out subsection (a)(2) 
of this section and shall otherwise comply with 
all other requirements of such section 444’’; 
(5) by redesignating subsections (c), (d), and 
(e) as subsections (b), (c), and (d), respectively; 
(6) by inserting after subsection (d) (as so re-
designated), the following: 
‘‘(e) ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—Notwithstanding any 
other provision of law, the members of the advisory com-
mittee appointed by the Director of the National Center
for Environmental Health that have expertise in birth de-
fects, developmental disabilities, and disabilities and 
health shall be transferred to and shall advise the National 
Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities 
effective on the date of enactment of the Birth Defects 
and Developmental Disabilities Prevention Act of 2003.’’; 
and 
(7) in subsection (f), by striking ‘‘$30,000,000’’ 
and all that follows and inserting ‘‘such sums as 
may be necessary for each of fiscal years 2003 
through 2007.’’. 
SEC. 3. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS FOR STATE COUNCILS 
ON DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES. 
Section 122(a) of the Developmental Disabilities As-
sistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 
15022(a)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (3)(A)(ii), by inserting before 
the period the following: ‘‘, the amount received by 
the State for the previous year, or the amount of 
Federal appropriations received in fiscal year 2000, 
2001, or 2002, whichever is greater’’; and 
(2) in paragraph (4)(A)(ii), by inserting before 
the period the following: ‘‘, the amount received by 
the State for the previous year, or the amount of
Federal appropriations received in fiscal year 2000, 
2001, or 2002, whichever is greater’’.