IV 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. CON. RES. 107 
Supporting the goals and ideals of ‘‘National STD Awareness Month’’. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 23, 2009 
Ms. LEE of California (for herself, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. MEEKS of New York, 
Ms. KILPATRICK of Michigan, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Ms. BALDWIN, and Mrs. 
CHRISTENSEN) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 
Supporting the goals and ideals of ‘‘National STD Awareness 
Month’’. 
Whereas sexually transmitted infections (STIs) (also known 
as sexually transmitted diseases, or STDs) pose a signifi-
cant 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 19,000,000 
new cases occurring each year, and almost half of those 
infections occurring in young people between the ages of 
15 to 24; 
Whereas, according to the Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention (CDC), STIs impose a tremendous economic 
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•HCON 107 IH 
burden on the United States, with direct medical costs as 
high as $15,900,000 per year; 
Whereas, in 2008, the CDC estimated that 1 in 4 young 
women between the ages of 14 and 19 in the United 
States, or 3,200,000 teenage girls, and nearly 1 in 2 Af-
rican-American young women are infected with at least 
one of the most common sexually transmitted infections, 
which are human papillomavirus (HPV), chlamydia, her-
pes simplex virus, and trichomoniasis; 
Whereas poverty and lack of access to quality health care ex-
acerbate the rate of infection with the human immuno-
deficiency virus (HIV) and other STIs; 
Whereas racial disparities in rates of STIs are among the 
worst health disparities in the Nation for any health con-
dition; 
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; 
Whereas the CDC also reports that the two most common 
STIs among young women are HPV, with 18 percent in-
fected, and chlamydia, with 4 percent infected; 
Whereas the long-term health effects of these STIs are espe-
cially severe for women and include infertility and cer-
vical cancer; 
Whereas vaccination, screening, and early treatment can pre-
vent some of the most devastating effects of STIs; 
Whereas high STI infection rates in the United States dem-
onstrate the need for better ways to reach those most at 
risk of infection; 
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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 and women between the ages of 11 and 26 who have 
not been vaccinated, or who have not completed the full 
series of shots; 
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 can be transmitted from infected mothers to 
infants during childbirth and can cause severe health 
consequences in these infants; 
Whereas STIs often cause social stigma and may have a seri-
ous psychological impact among those who are infected; 
Whereas the Federal Government should help people protect 
themselves against STIs by supporting programs pro-
viding comprehensive and medically accurate health infor-
mation and funding screening and treatment services, in-
cluding through a variety of programs such as under title 
X of the Public Health Service Act and the CDC’s STD 
prevention program; 
Whereas STI screening, vaccination, and other prevention 
strategies for sexually active women should be among our 
highest public health priorities; and 
Whereas the CDC observes April as ‘‘National STD Aware-
ness Month’’: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
concurring), That Congress— 
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(1) supports the goals and ideals of ‘‘National 
STD Awareness Month’’; 
(2) encourages the Federal Government, States, 
localities, and nonprofit organizations to observe the 
month with appropriate programs and activities, 
with the goal of increasing public knowledge of the 
risks of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and 
protecting people of all ages; 
(3) recognizes the human toll of STIs and the 
importance of making the prevention, diagnosis, and 
treatment of STIs an urgent public health priority; 
and 
(4) calls on all people in the United States to 
learn about STIs and the prevention approaches rec-
ommended for them and encourages all sexually ac-
tive individuals to get tested for STIs and to seek 
appropriate care if they are infected. 
Æ 
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