Sec. 2. Findings
160 words·~1 min read·
/bill/113/s/1239/is/section-2A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
The Congress finds as follows: Scleroderma is a chronic, disabling and often fatal autoimmune disease in which the body’s soft tissues contract and harden due to an overproduction of collagen. Scleroderma causes damage to one or more of the body’s organ systems, including the skin, heart, lungs, kidneys, gastrointestinal tract, and blood vessels. It is estimated that 300,000 people in the United States suffer from scleroderma, 80 percent of whom are women often diagnosed during their child bearing years.
Choctaw Native Americans, African-Americans, and Hispanics are disproportionately affected by scleroderma and tend to exhibit more rapidly progressing and severe cases of the disease. The causes of scleroderma are unknown. Scleroderma is associated with many other conditions including pulmonary hypertension, gastroparesis, Raynaud’s phenomenon, Sjögren’s Syndrome and lupus. The estimated total annual economic impact of scleroderma in the United States is in excess of $1,500,000,000.
Annual Federal support for scleroderma research at the National Institutes of Health is currently estimated at $20,000,000.