On June 14, the House approved, by voice vote, the Stroke Treatment and Ongoing Prevention Act (H.R. 3658). The House Energy and Commerce Committee approved the measure on March 3 (see The Source, 3/5/04).
Sponsored by Rep. Lois Capps (D-CA), the measure would create an education and information campaign to promote stroke prevention and increase the number of patients who seek immediate treatment. The bill also would authorize $4 million through FY2009 for education grants to health professionals for new diagnostic technologies and therapies for stroke patients.
H.R. 3658 would authorize $50 million for a pilot program to provide grants for states to create and improve coordinated long distance health care and education through telehealth networks for the treatment of stroke victims. The measure also would authorize $5 million for the compilation and distribution of information through the Paul Coverdell National Stroke Registry and Clearinghouse on efforts by medical institutions to develop and implement emergency and hospital care systems for stroke victims.
Rep. Chip Pickering (R-MS) said that according to the American Heart Association, “Every 45 seconds someone in the United States has a stroke. Every year 700,000 Americans suffer a stroke, and 164,000 lose their lives.” He added, “Not only are individuals losing their lives, but today 4.7 million Americans are stroke survivors, and as many as 30 percent are permanently disabled, requiring extensive and costly care. It is expected that strokes will cost the Nation $53.6 billion in 2004, including $33 billion in direct costs and $20.6 billion in indirect costs.”
Explaining that the purpose of the Congressional Heart and Stroke Coalition is to prevent death and disability from stroke, Rep. Capps stated, “If a stroke victim can get quick treatment, within 2 to 3 hours of the onset of symptoms, lives can be saved and many disabilities can be avoided or curtailed. But fewer than 3 percent of stroke patients now receive the state of the art medication, and only one in 10 stroke patients are monitored by a neurologist. Sadly and tragically, most Americans cannot today identify the signs of strokes, and many emergency room technicians are not trained to recognize and manage its symptoms.”
