Dennis John Benigno Traumatic Brain Injury Program Reauthorization Act of 2024

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 7208, the Dennis John Benigno Traumatic Brain Injury Program Reauthorization Act.

This bill was long championed by the late New Jersey Congressman Bill Pascrell. It reauthorizes a critical grant program to States through the Administration for Community Living, as well as data collection, surveillance, and analysis through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Before I talk about the importance of the bill, I want to take a moment to talk about our dear friend and colleague, Representative Bill Pascrell, Jr., who served here in this House for 27 years. He truly was the first son of Paterson and left an indelible mark on north Jersey throughout his public service career as a mayor, a public schoolteacher, an assemblyman, and a Congressman.

Simply put, he never, ever backed down from doing what was right and was always fighting for the little guy. So it is fitting today that we are considering legislation that he was extremely passionate about and embodied his tenacious spirit in supporting policies that made an impact in all of our communities.

First enacted in 1996 thanks to the tireless advocacy of Representative Pascrell, this law was the only Federal program which specifically addressed TBI prevention, research, and service delivery through grants to States.

Today, I am proud that this legislation will bear the names of two fierce advocates in the TBI community.

In his first term in Congress, Representative Pascrell founded the Congressional Traumatic Brain Injury Task Force after meeting with Dennis John Benigno.

Dennis John was a 15-year-old boy who was critically injured in 1984 after being struck by a car and suffered a severe brain injury that left him completely disabled. Before then, many in Congress had little firsthand knowledge about TBI or its forever long-term care impact on patients and families. This passion to share Dennis John's story and highlight the need of TBI research and support across the country became the successful law before us today.

This legislation will not only honor the legacy and courage of the Benigno family but also rename the national program to bear its biggest congressional champion's name, the Representative Bill Pascrell, Jr. National Program for Traumatic Brain Injury Surveillance and Injury.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were more than 214,000 TBI-related hospitalizations in 2020 and more than 69,000 TBI-related deaths in 2021. These estimates do not include the many TBIs that are only treated in the emergency department, urgent care, primary care, or those who simply go untreated.

I urge my colleagues to continue the support for this program and the research, treatment, and data surveillance counted on by the 5.3 million people living with lifelong disabilities due to a TBI.

I thank Chair Rodgers and Subcommittee Chair Guthrie for their collaboration to advance this important bipartisan bill and to forever honor the legacy of its greatest champions.

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Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, in closing, I urge my colleagues to support this in the name of both Mr. Benigno and our colleague, Bill Pascrell, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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