Pallone Commends House Passage of Public Health Bills

Press Release

Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06), Ranking Member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, commended yesterday evening's House of Representatives passage of four public health bills, which originated in his Committee and which were approved with strong bipartisan support.

"Despite partisan divisions in much of Congress, I am glad that we have found ways in our Committee to bring Democrats and Republicans together to develop and advance legislation that will help millions of Americans," said Congressman Pallone. "Whether it is caring for hearing-impaired children, combatting prescription drug abuse and Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome, or matching patients for bone marrow and blood transplants, all of these bills passed by the House would have a significant and positive impact on the public health of New Jersey and the entire country."

Pallone is the coauthor of one of the bills -- National All Schedules Prescription Electronic Reporting (NASPER) Act -- and has long-led Democratic efforts for its reauthorization. With prescription drug abuse on the rise, the legislation provides grant funding to states for prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs). PDMPs aid in combatting the growing prescription drug abuse epidemic by helping prescribers, pharmacists, and law enforcement officials track the misuse of prescription drugs.

"NASPER is especially important to New Jersey, which, along with many other states, is facing a serious prescription drug epidemic," continued Pallone. "By helping to ensure prescription drugs are used only for intended purposes with legitimate prescriptions, NASPER will combat this devastating and growing epidemic, which accounts for over 20,000 deaths in the United States each year."

The effects are being felt throughout the country, and while New Jersey has the 11th lowest rate of prescription drug abuse, it is no exception. According to the most recent statistics, 3.9 percent of the state's population over the age of 12 uses prescription drugs for nonmedical purposes. Furthermore, the number of drug overdone deaths -- a majority of which are from prescription drugs -- in New Jersey increased by 51 percent since 1999.

As the top Democrat on the Energy and Commerce Committee, Pallone helped usher through three additional public health bills that passed the House yesterday evening.

The Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Act of 2015 would reauthorize a program that gives children early access to interventions and treatments that are critical in minimizing a hearing-impaired child's risk of developmental delays, especially communication, social skills and cognition. Prior to the creation of this program, less than 50 percent of all newborns were regularly screened for hearing loss, and since its implementation about 97 percent of newborns now receive a hearing screening.

The Protecting Our Infants Act of 2015 would address the urgent need for a comprehensive strategy for Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS), a harmful outcome of the nation's opioid epidemic that has been increasing steeply over the past decade. The legislation would require the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop recommendations for the treatment and prevention of prenatal opiate abuse and NAS. It would also require the collection of data to better monitor the problem.

The Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Reauthorization Act would continue federal support for a program that includes a matching registry for people in need of bone marrow and umbilical cord blood transplants. The registry currently has nearly 12.5 million registered bone marrow donors and more than 209,000 umbilical cord blood units. The program also supports the collection and use of transplantation data to advance medical research.

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