BILL ANALYSIS �
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AJR 18
Author: Carter (D), et al.
Amended: 9/7/11 in Assembly
Vote: 21
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 73-0, 9/7/11 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Sickle Cell Awareness Month
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This resolution recognizes September 2011 as
Sickle Cell Awareness Month in California and urges the
President and the Congress of the United States to restore
funding for sickle cell anemia centers and research and to
make sickle cell anemia and other genetic
hemoglobinopathies a public health priority.
ANALYSIS :
Resolution findings:
1.Sickle cell anemia and sickle cell disease, though used
interchangeably, refer to a group of inherited disorders
that affect the red blood cells.
2.Red blood cells with normal hemoglobin are smooth and
round, and glide easily through blood vessels. In the
bodies of people with sickle cell disease, their cells
assume a curved or "sickle" shape and become hard and
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sticky, blocking blood flow and preventing oxygen from
getting through tissues and causing severe pain and
damage to organs.
3.It is estimated that over 70,000 Americans have sickle
cell anemia. About 2.5 million Americans have the sickle
cell trait, meaning they carry one copy of the gene for
the disease.
4.Sickle cell anemia occurs in 1 out of every 400 African
American births and 1 out of every 19,000 Hispanic
American births. The sickle cell trait occurs in
approximately 1 out of 12 African Americans and 1 out of
100 for Latino populations.
5.The Sickle Cell Control Act was signed into law in 1972
by President Richard Nixon after pledging that his
administration would "reverse the record of neglect on
the dreaded disease" and to increase funding and expand
sickle cell disease-related activities including the
development of comprehensive sickle cell centers.
6.Over 30 years later, the Sickle Cell Treatment Act of
2003 was signed into law.
7.Originating in 1975, when the Sickle Cell Disease
Association of America and its member organizations began
conducting month-long events in September to call
attention to sickle cell disease and the need to address
the problem at national and local levels, chose September
as National Sickle Cell Awareness Month for the public to
reflect on children and adults whose lives, education,
and careers have been affected by this disease.
8.Since 2002, the Sickle Cell Disease Association of
America has worked with congressional champions to
authorize and fund a number of national sickle cell
disease legislative programs that provide support for
patients suffering from sickle cell disease, while
encouraging enhanced research intended to identify
next-generation treatments and a cure for sickle cell
disease.
9.The effort to have Sickle Cell Awareness Month officially
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recognized at all levels succeeded in 1983 when the House
of Representatives unanimously passed, and the President
signed, the first resolution introduced by the
Congressional Black Caucus designating September as
National Sickle Cell Anemia Awareness Month in 1983.
FISCAL EFFECT : Fiscal Com.: No
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 73-0, 9/7/11
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall, Bill
Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford,
Brownley, Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos,
Cedillo, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Davis, Donnelly, Eng,
Feuer, Fletcher, Fong, Beth Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick,
Gatto, Gordon, Grove, Hagman, Halderman, Harkey, Hayashi,
Roger Hern�ndez, Hill, Huber, Hueso, Huffman, Jeffries,
Jones, Knight, Lara, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma,
Mansoor, Mendoza, Miller, Mitchell, Monning, Morrell,
Nestande, Nielsen, Olsen, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel P�rez,
Portantino, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio, Swanson,
Torres, Valadao, Wagner, Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada,
John A. P�rez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Carter, Dickinson, Fuentes, Furutani,
Gorell, Hall, Norby
CTW:do 9/8/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: NONE RECEIVED
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