REMOVING BARRIERS TO LIFESAVING MEDICAL INNOVATIONS

REMOVING BARRIERS TO LIFESAVING MEDICAL INNOVATIONS

Congressional Record, Volume 171 Issue 25 (Thursday, February 6, 2025) [Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 25 (Thursday, February 6, 2025)] [House] [Pages H535-H536] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] REMOVING BARRIERS TO LIFESAVING MEDICAL INNOVATIONS (Mr. JOYCE of Pennsylvania asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.) Mr. JOYCE of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, this week, I introduced the bipartisan ORPHAN Cures Act, legislation to remove barriers to lifesaving medical innovations. The ORPHAN Cures Act protects the incentives for critical research and development implemented by the Orphan [[Page H536]] Drug Act of 1983, which has produced more than 800 treatments for rare diseases over the past 40 years. More than 30 million Americans are affected by nearly 10,000 rare diseases. Unfortunately 95 percent of these diseases have no treatment. We cannot abandon the American patients who suffer from diseases like Duchenne muscular dystrophy, Huntington's disease, ALS, cystic fibrosis, and scleroderma, which I treated during my time in active medical practice. By protecting critical research and developing incentives, we can give millions of Americans hope for the future. I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation to foster innovative cures for patients throughout this great land. ____________________