Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 99 Part 1.djvu/806

 99 STAT. 784

PUBLIC LAW 99-148—NOV. 12, 1985 Public Law 99-148 99th Congress

7*1 €v; & £ Joint Resolution

Nov. 12, 1985 [S.J. Res. 29]

Designating the week of November 11 through November 17, 1985, as "National Reye's Syndrome Week".

Whereas Reye's Syndrome is a disease of unknown cause which normally attacks healthy children eighteen years of age and under, both male and female, which can kill or cripple more than half of its victims within several days by attacking the muscles, liver, brain, and kidneys, and which affects every organ in the body; Whereas Reye's Syndrome is recognized by the Food and Drug Administration to be one of the top ten killers among all children's diseases; Whereas Reye's Syndrome was first recognized as a specific illness in 1963 but is not a new illness since children have been affected by it for decades during which it was improperly diagnosed; Whereas the reporting of cases of Reye's Syndrome is required in only one-half of the States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the other territories and possessions of the United States; Whereas national Reye's Syndrome volunteer organizations are established throughout the United States and are supported by thousands of parents; Whereas such volunteer organizations exist to encourage involvement of the Federal Government in supporting Reye's Syndrome research; to encourage coordination of the treatment and research efforts by the various Reye's Syndrome treatment and research centers; to establish Reye's Syndrome as a reportable disease in every State; to establish at the Center for Disease Control a position for the review of data on Reye's Syndrome patients; to sponsor programs to educate parents and medical professionals with respect to diagnosis and treatment of the illness; and to raise funds for research into cause, prevention, and treatment of Reye's Syndrome; Wheresis the public, the Federal Government in general, and the Congress in particular, are not sufficiently aware of the continuous increase in the incidence of Reye's Syndrome; and Whereas the chief executive officers of several States have declared Reye's Syndrome weeks: Now, therefore, be it

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