107th Congress

International Tuberculosis Control Act of 2002

S. 2045

Background

In her opening statement upon introduction of S. 2045, the International Tuberculosis Control Act of 2002, Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) said that she was introducing this legislation because of the high worldwide tuberculosis (TB) death toll and infection rate, especially among those with compromised immune systems. Senator Boxer also mentioned that TB is reemerging in the United States because of increased immigration and travel abroad. She added that she collaborated with Senator Gordon Smith (R-OR) in 2000 to triple TB funding to $60 million, and that she is partnering with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to work with international partners like the World Health Organization (WHO) to use a course of treatment called "Directly Observed Treatment Short-Course." This treatment is relatively inexpensive and reduces the chance of Multi-Drug Resistance TB from developing.

For more background on TB, see the article entitled "Comprehensive Tuberculosis Elimination Act of 2001."

Provisions of the Legislation/Impact on NIH

S. 2045 conveyed the congressional expectation that USAID would coordinate with WHO, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, and other organizations with respect to the development and implementation of a comprehensive TB control program. S. 2045 set as a goal the detection of at least 70 percent of the cases of infectious TB and the cure of at least 85 percent of the cases detected in those countries that WHO has classified as having the highest TB burden by December 31, 2005, and in those countries in which WHO already has established development programs by December 31, 2010. For carrying out these activities, $200 million would have been authorized for each of the fiscal years 2003 through 2005. The President would have been required to submit an annual report to Congress specifying increases both in the number of persons treated and those cured through each program, project, or activity receiving U.S. foreign assistance for purposes of TB control.

Status and Outlook

S. 2045 was introduced by Senator Boxer on March 21, 2002, and was referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. No further action occurred during the 107th Congress.