III
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. CON. RES. 271
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
OCTOBER 23 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 22), 2000
Received
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Expressing the support of Congress for activities to increase
public awareness of multiple sclerosis.
Whereas multiple sclerosis is a chronic and often disabling
disease of the central nervous system which often first
appears in people between the ages of 20 and 40, with
lifelong physical and emotional effects;
Whereas multiple sclerosis is twice as common in women as
in men;
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Whereas an estimated 250,000 to 350,000 individuals suffer
from multiple sclerosis nationally;
Whereas symptoms of multiple sclerosis can be mild, such as
numbness in the limbs, or severe, such as paralysis or
loss of vision;
Whereas the progress, severity, and specific symptoms of
multiple sclerosis in any one person cannot yet be pre-
dicted;
Whereas the annual cost to each affected individual averages
$34,000, and the total cost can exceed $2 million over an
individual’s lifetime;
Whereas the annual cost of treating all people who suffer
from multiple sclerosis in the United States is nearly $9
billion;
Whereas the cause of multiple sclerosis remains unknown,
but genetic factors are believed to play a role in deter-
mining a person’s risk for developing multiple sclerosis;
Whereas many of the symptoms of multiple sclerosis can be
treated with medications and rehabilitative therapy;
Whereas new treatments exist that can slow the course of the
disease, and reduce its severity;
Whereas medical experts recommend that all people newly di-
agnosed with relapse-remitting multiple sclerosis begin
disease-modifying therapy;
Whereas finding the genes responsible for susceptibility to
multiple sclerosis may lead to the development of new
and more effective ways to treat the disease;
Whereas increased funding for the National Institutes of
Health would provide the opportunity for research and
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the creation of programs to increase awareness, preven-
tion, and education; and
Whereas Congress as an institution, and Members of Con-
gress as individuals, are in unique positions to help raise
public awareness about the detection and treatment of
multiple sclerosis and to support the fight against mul-
tiple sclerosis: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That it is the sense of the Congress that—
(1) all Americans should take an active role in
the fight to end the devastating effects of multiple
sclerosis on individuals, their families, and the econ-
omy;
(2) the role played by national and community
organizations and health care professionals in pro-
moting the importance of continued funding for re-
search, and in providing information about and ac-
cess to the best medical treatment and support serv-
ices for people with multiple sclerosis should be rec-
ognized and applauded;
(3) the Federal Government has a responsibility
to—
(A) continue to fund research so that the
causes of, and improved treatment for, multiple
sclerosis may be discovered;
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(B) continue to consider ways to improve
access to, and the quality of, health care serv-
ices for people with multiple sclerosis;
(C) endeavor to raise public awareness
about the symptoms of multiple sclerosis; and
(D) endeavor to raise health professional’s
awareness about diagnosis of multiple sclerosis
and the best course of treatment for people
with the disease.
Passed the House of Representatives October 19,
2000.
Attest:
JEFF TRANDAHL,
Clerk.
By MARTHA C. MORRISON,
Deputy Clerk.