Stephanie Tubbs Jones Gift of Life Medal Act of 2008

STEPHANIE TUBBS JONES GIFT OF LIFE MEDAL ACT OF 2008 -- (House of Representatives - September 23, 2008)

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Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

It is with great humility and respect that I present for favorable consideration H.R. 6950, the Stephanie Tubbs Jones Gift of Life Medal Act of 2008.

Our friend, our respected colleague, Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones, worked tirelessly for her district, for her community and for people who are underrepresented. As a constant advocate for justice and peace, as a very proud member of the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health, she was a fervent supporter and leader of efforts to reduce health disparities in our Nation.

This legislation directs the Treasury Department to design and produce a commemorative medal that the Department of Health and Human Services will award to organ donors or to a surviving family member, which is especially fitting to be named in honor of Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones for a couple of reasons:

Organ donation is an area where dramatic health disparities still exist. She, herself, was an organ donor, and over 50 beneficiaries have benefited from her gift of life.

The number of Americans affected by shortages of suitable organs for donation is considerable. Nearly 100,000 people are currently waiting for organ transplants, and nearly 2,000 of these are children under 18. The national waiting list grows substantially every year. Since the waiting list began, over 80,000 donation-eligible Americans have died while waiting for an organ to become available. In 2007 alone, over 6,500 people died for lack of a suitable organ.

The men and women who elect to become organ donors are heroes and sheroes just like our friend and colleague. They have the opportunity to give the gift of life to thousands of Americans who are suffering from debilitating and lethal diseases.

While the gift of a donor is priceless, the enactment of this bill would have no cost to the Federal Government as funding for the medals would come from charitable donations.

I would reserve the balance of my time.

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Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, many thanks are due to Representative PETE STARK, the chairman of the Ways and Means Health Subcommittee, who quickly organized this bill in honor of our colleague.

Also, many thanks go to former Senate majority leader and transplant surgeon Bill Frist for whom this bill was named in an earlier version in this Congress. Now, while in the Senate, Dr. Frist worked hard on behalf of organ donors and their families. He supported renaming the bill for Representative Tubbs Jones. Earlier versions of this bill have been endorsed by the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations, by the American Society of Transplantation, by the American Association of Transplant Surgeons, by the National Kidney Foundation, by the American Association of Kidney Patients, by the Organization of Transplant Professionals, and by the Transplant Recipients International Organization.

I strongly urge passage of this bill.

I would ask the lady if she has any further speakers.

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