IV
103D CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. CON. RES. 22
Expressing the sense of the Congress with respect to contraception and
infertility.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JANUARY 25, 1993
Mrs. SCHROEDER (for herself and Ms. SNOWE) submitted the following con-
current resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and
Commerce
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of the Congress with respect to
contraception and infertility.
Whereas the incidence in the United States of both unin-
tended pregnancy and abortion is substantial and unac-
ceptable;
Whereas there is a significant incidence of infertility in the
United States;
Whereas studies estimate that 31,800,000 women nationwide
are at risk of unintended pregnancy, and that, for a vari-
ety of reasons, 13 percent of these women are not using
any form of contraception;
Whereas there is a substantial need for the development of
new contraceptive drugs and devices, but only 1 private
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pharmaceutical company based in the United States is
conducting research toward such development;
Whereas, if a variety of safe and effective options with re-
spect to contraception are widely available, significant
benefits for women and their families accrue, including a
reduction in the number of low-birthweight births and a
reduction in the number of premature births, leading to
a reduced incidence of maternal and infant mortality;
Whereas it is estimated that 1 out of 6 couples in the United
States is infertile or fails to conceive within 1 year of de-
ciding to have a child;
Whereas the Centers for Disease Control estimates that 20
percent of cases of infertility in the United States are
caused by sexually transmitted diseases;
Whereas cases of infertility resulting from sexually transmit-
ted diseases are the most preventable of such cases;
Whereas, with respect to the problems of contraception and
infertility, the obstacles to making an effective response
to such problems are many and include a lack of consist-
ent funding, the political controversy concerning abortion,
the lengthy and complex procedures for the approval by
the Food and Drug Administration of new drugs and de-
vices, the costs of liability insurance for research and for
the marketing of drugs and devices, and a shortage of
scientists in the relevant fields; and
Whereas family planning is universally recognized as a
human right: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That the Congress should—
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(1) establish a program of research for the de-
velopment of new and improved methods of contra-
ception and new and improved methods of diagnos-
ing and treating infertility, including the establish-
ment of research centers for such purposes;
(2) provide adequate long-term resources for
the program to ensure that the program is among
the principal Federal research priorities and that the
United States is a world leader in research with re-
spect to contraception and infertility;
(3) ensure that Federal programs with respect
to the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of sexu-
ally transmitted diseases adequately respond to the
role of such diseases in cases of infertility;
(4) ensure that the public is educated with re-
spect to contraception and infertility, including edu-
cation on new and improved drugs and devices;
(5) establish as Federal goals the development,
by the year 2010, of—
(A) improved barrier methods to protect
against unintended pregnancy and sexually
transmitted diseases;
(B) new methods of contraception for use
by men;
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(C) a vaccine-like drug for women that
prevents unintended pregnancy for a significant
period of time without disrupting the menstrual
cycle or causing adverse metabolic or cardio-
vascular effects; and
(D) new and improved techniques of diag-
nosing and treating infertility;
(6) require the Secretary of Health and Human
Services to take prompt action to reestablish the
Ethical Advisory Board (terminated in 1980) in
order to facilitate research with respect to infertility;
(7) review the policies and procedures of the
Food and Drug Administration to determine the ex-
tent to which the process of approving drugs and de-
vices for use by the public, especially with respect to
contraception and infertility, can be expedited with
a reasonable degree of safety, including consider-
ation of the role of conducting ongoing surveys and
studies of the effects on the public of drugs and de-
vices that have been so approved; and
(8) determine to what extent measures can be
implemented by public or private entities to resolve
liability issues regarding persons conducting re-
search into, or marketing, drugs and devices with re-
spect to contraception and infertility.