Tammy Baldwin

Ms. BALDWIN

Ms. BALDWIN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution now under consideration.

Ms. BALDWIN

Ms. BALDWIN. I yield back the remainder of my time.

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from South Dakota, Congresswoman Herseth Sandlin.

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the bill's author, the distinguished gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel).

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might consume. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2295 the ALS Registry Act. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease, is a fatal, progressive neuro- degenerative disease affecting approximately 5,600 Americans each year. It is estimated that as many as 30,000 Americans have ALS at any given time with an average life expectancy of 2 to 5 years from the time of diagnosis. Today, no single national patient registry collects and stores information on the prevalence and incidence of ALS. The ALS Registry Act would create a nationwide registry at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for ALS and other related motor neuron disorders. The patient registry would collect data which is urgently needed for ALS research, disease management, and the development of standards of care. This will allow us to make real progress toward better understanding ALS, and to develop measures for prevention, treatment and cure of this dreaded disease. Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my friend and colleague, Representative Eliot Engel, for his dedication to bringing this bill before us today. Madam Speaker, I strongly urge my colleagues to support H.R. 2295. I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Ms. BALDWIN

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I yield back the remainder of my time.

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, in closing, I wish to urge my colleagues to support this important bill. As we have heard, postpartum depression is a very serious women's health issue. This bill will raise awareness about postpartum depression and will further research in an effort to find a cure. Again I want to commend my colleague (Mr. Rush) for his incredibly hard work on this bill, and I urge my colleagues to support its passage.

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to yield 7 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois, the bill's author, Mr. Rush.

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 20, the Melanie Blocker-Stokes Postpartum Depression Research and Care Act of 2007. The birth of a child can be a joyous and exciting time, but following childbirth, some women may experience postpartum disorders that can adversely affect a woman's mental health. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, about 10 percent of new moms experience postpartum depression, a form of depression that can develop within the first 6 months after giving birth. For women with postpartum depression, feelings such as sadness, anxiety, and restlessness can be so strong that they interfere with daily tasks. Rarely, a more extreme form of depression known as postpartum psychosis can develop. Postpartum depression and psychosis can have an adverse effect on a woman's mental health and impair their ability to bond with their newborn child. The legislation before us today will go a long way towards helping to increase awareness of postpartum depression and psychosis. H.R. 20 encourages the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Director of the National Institutes of Health to expand and intensify research on postpartum depression and to conduct and support research in an effort to find a cure for postpartum depression and psychosis. Furthermore, this legislation encourages the NIH to carry out a national campaign to increase awareness of postpartum depression, and it directs Health and Human Services to make grants to help with coordinating the effective delivery of essential services to individuals with postpartum depression, as well as their families. I would like to extend a special thank you to our Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection Subcommittee chairman, Mr. Rush, who has championed this bill's cause. His commitment to ensuring that women who suffer from postpartum depression better understand their condition and have access to the resources that they need has been unwavering. I commend him for his hard work, and I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting this life-saving legislation. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. BALDWIN

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, in closing, visual impairments can have lifelong consequences for children. As we have heard, this bill will help identify these impairments early so that our kids can live up to their full potential. This bill and the others that preceded it are prime examples of bipartisan cooperation. I urge my colleagues to support this bill and those that have preceded it. And I also thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Fossella) for his assistance in expeditiously, yet comprehensively, managing the nine vital important and bipartisan health bills that were before us this afternoon.

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to yield 4 minutes to the lead author of this bill, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gene Green).

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I am delighted to yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell), a passionate advocate of this legislation.

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 507, the Vision Care for Kids Act of 2007. A small but significant portion of children have visual impairments. It is estimated that vision impairment affects approximately 1.2 out of every 1,000 8-year-olds. When detected early, many childhood vision abnormalities are treatable, but the potential for correction and normal visual development diminishes with age. Vision problems can occur at any point during a lifetime, but tend to be particularly damaging to school-age children. Impaired vision can result in adverse physical, emotional, and social consequences. For instance, a child may miss learning opportunities by failing to explore his or her environment. Additionally, if a child is visually impaired, he or she may be unable to imitate social behavior or understand nonverbal cues. Early recognition of eye disease results in more effective treatment and that can be sight saving and sometimes even life saving. Yet, many children under the age of five do not receive any vision screening at all. The Vision Care for Kids Act of 2007 would authorize a grant program to provide comprehensive eye exams for uninsured children with vision disorders, with priority for children under the age of 9. Funds would be used for treatment and services to correct vision disorders identified through eye exams and to increase public awareness of visual impairment in children. H.R. 507 would require States receiving funds to contribute a 25 percent match of funds for each Federal dollar obtained through the program. The bill before us today makes great strides in providing access to an array of vision-related services, including vision screening services that can help uninsured children in low- to moderate-income families. I want to thank my colleagues for their commitment and strong support of this legislation, and particularly commend my dear friend and colleague, Representative Gene Green, for his unwavering dedication to this issue. I urge my colleagues to support this vital and important legislation. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 507) to establish a grant program to provide vision care to children, and for other purposes, as amended.

Ms. BALDWIN

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, Diamond-Blackfan anemia is such a serious condition; and because it is such a rare disease, there is a real need for increased awareness and research. I commend my colleague Mrs. McCarthy for her advocacy on this issue, and I urge my colleagues to support the resolution. I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. BALDWIN

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 970) to amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act with respect to the distribution of the drug dextromethorphan, and for other purposes, as amended.

Ms. BALDWIN. I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I want to state that this bill and its passage will certainly begin to curb the abuse of dextromethorphan. I would like to thank the gentleman also for his leadership on this bill and that of Mr. Rick Larsen's. This will begin a process of educating about the harm that such abuse of over-the-counter drugs can cause, and I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this bill.

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. BALDWIN

Ms. BALDWIN. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution now under consideration.