CONGRESSMAN
COLLIN
C.
PETERSON
Minnesota
- 7th District http://www.house.gov/collinpeterson/
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 14, 2001 CONTACT: Jordan Rapp/202-225-2165
Peterson
Introduces Bill To
Fight
(WASHINGTON,
DC) — Congressman Collin Peterson (DFL-7th District) on
Wednesday introduced legislation designed to fight childhood muscular
dystrophy by boosting research funding and raising public awareness.
Along
with Rep. Roger F. Wicker (R-Miss.), Peterson is proposing to create
research centers within the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the
Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to coordinate efforts to fight the
disease, which is the world’s number one lethal childhood genetic
disorder.
“One
of my constituents has a child with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy,” Peterson
said. “She and her son have taught me a lot about this disease and it’s
clear that there’s more we can do to find a cure. ”
The
Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) Care Act would authorize three centers of
excellence for DMD research at NIH and three centers for DMD Epidemiology,
data collection, and surveillance at CDC.
Duchenne is the most common form of muscular dystrophy.
The disease is hereditary and is characterized by rapidly-progressive
muscle weakness which almost always results in death by age 20.
The
gene that causes DMD was identified in 1987, but since that time, federal
research efforts have been minimal. “There’s
real hope for finding a cure if we have the resources.
And we hope this legislation will help get us there,” Peterson
said.
The two lawmakers also announced creation of the
Congressional Childhood Muscular Dystrophy Caucus.
The goal of the caucus is to increase awareness among Members of
Congress and advocate federal support for wiping out the disease.
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