September 23, 2020 - Issue: Vol. 166, No. 165 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 2nd Session

[Page S5835]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTION

      By Mr. REED (for himself, Mr. Burr, Ms. Smith, and Mr. Scott, of 
        South Carolina):
  S. 4672. A bill to reauthorize the Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research 
Act of 2005, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Health, 
Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Mr. REED. Mr. President, today I am pleased to introduce the Timely 
Reauthorization of Necessary Stem Cell Programs Lends Access to Needed 
Therapies (TRANSPLANT) Act of 2020 with Senators Richard Burr, Tina 
Smith, and Tim Scott. This bill offers promise to the tens of thousands 
of individuals diagnosed with leukemia and lymphomas, sickle cell 
anemia, and rare genetic blood disorders.
  Our bipartisan legislation renews the C.W. Bill Young Cell 
Transplantation Program and the National Cord Blood Inventory (NCBI), 
the only programs in the country that maintain donor registries for 
individuals in need of a bone marrow and umbilical cord blood 
transplantation. Over twenty-two million Americans are registered bone 
marrow donors resulting in nearly 6,500 transplants just last year. In 
the years since NCBI was established, more than 300,000 cord blood 
units have been collected, facilitating more than 100,000 blood stem 
cell transplants. The TRANSPLANT Act would reaffirm the commitment to 
these life-saving programs, which have been helping to connect 
individuals in need of bone marrow or umbilical cord blood transplants 
with donors for more than two decades.
  The public registries, made up of donors from all over the country, 
have been a true lifeline for the Americans who have found an unrelated 
match. By strengthening and enhancing the important programs operating 
these registries, many more Americans will be afforded the opportunity 
to find a match if they are ever in need. I look forward to swift 
consideration of this legislation in the Senate Health, Education, 
Labor, and Pensions Committee and working toward passage in the full 
Senate.

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