Cerebral Palsy Research Program Authorization Act of 2022
Bill: H.R.7265 | Sponsor: Rep. Cohen, Steve (D-TN)
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Cerebral Palsy Research Program Authorization Act of 2022
This bill expands research activities related to cerebral palsy (a group of disorders caused by abnormal brain development or damage that affects an individual's ability to move and maintain balance and posture).
Specifically, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention must carry out a cerebral palsy research program that addresses diagnosis and treatment, public health surveillance, and related matters.
Additionally, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke and the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development must update an existing strategic plan for cerebral palsy research.

To amend the Public Health Service Act to authorize the Secretary of 
Health and Human Services to carry out a program of research related to 
                cerebral palsy, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Cerebral Palsy Research Program 
Authorization Act of 2022''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Cerebral palsy is the most common motor disability in 
        children, affecting more than 1,000,000 Americans, 1 in 345 
        children, and over 17,000,000 people worldwide.
            (2) In the United States, more than 10,000 babies are 
        diagnosed with cerebral palsy each year.
            (3) Cerebral palsy is a broad group of disorders disrupting 
        a person's ability to move, sit, stand, walk, talk, and use 
        their hands.
            (4) In more than 80 percent of cases, the cause of cerebral 
        palsy is unknown.
            (5) Seventy-five percent of individuals with cerebral palsy 
        also have 1 or more additional developmental disabilities 
        including epilepsy, intellectual disabilities, communication 
        problems, learning and attention disorders, chronic pain, 
        autism, hearing disorders, and visual impairments or blindness.
            (6) Children with cerebral palsy are more likely to die 
        from the flu and related viruses, including COVID-19, than 
        children without neurologic disorders.
            (7) There is no consensus of best practices for a person 
        with cerebral palsy at the time of diagnosis or through the 
        lifespan.
            (8) It is estimated that the lifetime care and medical 
        costs for all people with cerebral palsy who were born in 2000 
        alone will total more than $13,500,000,000. The loss of 
        productivity and lost wages of the individual with cerebral 
        palsy and their family members is more than $35,000,000,000.
            (9) There is no known cure for cerebral palsy, and in most 
        cases, it is not preventable.

SEC. 3. CEREBRAL PALSY RESEARCH.

    Title III of the Public Health Service Act is amended by inserting 
after section 317C of such Act (42 U.S.C. 247b-4) the following new 
section:

``SEC. 317C-1. CEREBRAL PALSY RESEARCH.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary, acting through the Director of 
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and in consultation 
with other Federal agencies and partners, shall carry out (directly or 
through grants or contracts) a program of research related to cerebral 
palsy, including--
            ``(1) research on--
                    ``(A) the most promising avenues of cerebral palsy 
                diagnosis and treatment;
                    ``(B) factors that may mitigate the prevalence of 
                cerebral palsy; and
                    ``(C) the health care and societal costs of 
                cerebral palsy;
            ``(2) public health surveillance; and
            ``(3) other research that the Director of the Centers for 
        Disease Control and Prevention determines to be appropriate to 
        provide education and training for health professionals and the 
        general public for purposes of diagnosing, treating, and 
        explaining the causes, prevalence, and lifelong effects of 
        cerebral palsy.
    ``(b) Technical Assistance.--The Secretary may (directly or through 
grants or contracts) provide technical assistance to public and 
nonprofit private entities in furtherance of research under this 
section.
    ``(c) Evaluations.--The Secretary shall (directly or through grants 
or contracts) provide for the evaluation of activities under subsection 
(a) in order to determine the extent to which such activities have been 
effective, including evaluation of the effects of such activities on 
various demographic populations.
    ``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out this section, 
there is authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2023 through 2028.''.

SEC. 4. UPDATING STRATEGIC PLAN FOR CEREBRAL PALSY RESEARCH.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Director of the National Institutes of Health, acting 
through the Director of the National Institute of Neurological 
Disorders and Stroke and the Director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver 
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development--
            (1) shall conduct a strategic workshop with key 
        stakeholders to provide updates on promising research performed 
        to date with the goal of further refining the specific 
        opportunities that were identified in the ``NINDS/NICHD 
        Strategic Plan for Cerebral Palsy Research'' dated September 
        30, 2017 (or any successor strategic plan);
            (2) shall update such strategic plan (or any successor 
        strategic plan) to include--
                    (A) new research opportunities that are identified 
                in the workshop under paragraph (1);
                    (B) a process and timeline for soliciting proposals 
                for research on cerebral palsy;
                    (C) implementation and clinical studies aimed at 
                early detection and intervention, comparative 
                effectiveness, and functional outcomes; and
                    (D) surveillance;
            (3) may include in such updated strategic plan a focus on 
        basic and translational discoveries, including with respect 
        to--
                    (A) neuroprotective medicine;
                    (B) regenerative medicine and mechanisms of 
                neuroplasticity; and
                    (C) genomics; and
            (4) shall publish the updated strategic plan.
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out this section, 
there is authorized to be appropriated $500,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2023 and 2024.
                                 <all>