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Washington, DC -- Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, today unveiled legislation establishing an inter-agency task force to address the increase in infertility rates among Americans, citing the threat it poses to public health and the solvency of Social Security and Medicare.
Pallone made his remarks before a panel session of the Annual Clinical Meeting of the 49,000-member American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists at the Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C.
“It is crucial that we develop a national strategy to combat the increase in infertility in the United States,” said Pallone. “Infertility is both a preventable and treatable disease. Every day we are learning more about the multiple causes of infertility, including sexually transmitted diseases and pollutants, but the problem is not being addressed in a unified, sensible and cost-efficient manner.”
Pallone noted that a February 16 report of RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association, the leading patient organization in the field, called for significantly more testing and research related to environmental toxins. The group cited specific examples of increased infertility in patients exposed to contaminated water. An Associated Press story today noted that improved therapies for cancer patients also bring with them great risks of infertility and that 55,000 Americans under the age of 35, still in their reproductive years, are diagnosed with cancer annually.
The nine-term congressman also noted that fertility is an important factor in determining the solvency of important government programs, such as Medicare and Social Security.
“Seniors are living longer thanks to advancements in medical technology, but at the same time, the national fertility rate has dropped dramatically,” said Pallone. “Now there are fewer and fewer workers to pay into the system to support our aging population”
Pallone cited a report released last week that shows the Medicare Part A trust fund, which funds hospital services for our seniors, would be insolvent in 2018, two years earlier than the trustees predicted last year. Similarly, the Social Security trust fund will be exhausted in 2040, one year earlier than projected lasted year, the trustees said.
“There are two factors that are chiefly responsible for the financial troubles of these programs: increased longevity and decreased fertility,” said Pallone. “To the extent that we can reduce the incidence of infertility, we can increase the long term outlook for caring for our aging population.”
Pallone outlined his plans for the interagency task force and its membership, which would include federal government representatives from the Health and Human Services Department, the Centers for Disease Control, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality. It would also include representatives from the Association of American Medical Colleges and American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
Primarily, the task force would work to:
- coordinate activities among departments within the federal government to compile data on the incidence of infertility;
- coordinate and encourage research in the public and private sector on the prevention and treatment of infertility;
- develop federal policies to promote awareness of the causes of infertility;
- create an infertility prevention curriculum to serve as a model for the nation's medical schools;
- establish partnerships with industry, academia, State and local governments to disseminate information on infertility prevention.
“It is my hope that this legislation will result in a national strategy to combat infertility by bringing together the talented scientific, policy and medical experts who are best equipped to tackle the problem and recommend practical, workable solutions,” said Pallone. |
