,,ii  #aafth ,,congress  #b;d ,session  
,s4 #dcig  ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of     
,,the ,,united ,,states  ,august #c1    
#bjbj,ms4 ,harris 7for herself1 ,mr4    
,van ,hollen1 and ,mr4 ,booker7         
introduced the following bill2 which was
 read twice and referred to the         
,committee on ,health1 ,education1      
,labor1 and ,pensions  ,a ,,bill  ,to   
provide for research and education with 
respect to uterine fibroids1 and for    
other purposes4  #a4 ,short title ,this 
,act may be cited as the ,uterine       
,fibroid ,research and ,education ,act  
of #bjbj4  #b4 ,findings ,congress finds
 as follows3 7#a7 ,it is estimated that 
between #bj and #cj percent of women of 
reproductive age have clinically        
recognized uterine fibroids1 and        
screening studies indicate the          
prevalence of uterine fibroids in women 
may be much higher4  7#b7 ,in the       
,united ,states1 an estimated           
#bf1jjj1jjj women between the ages of   
#ae and #ej have uterine fibroids4      

,uterine fibroids may cause significant 
morbidity through their presence in the 
uterus and pelvic cavity1 causing       
significant pelvic pain1 iron-deficiency
 anemia1 miscarriages1 infertility1 and 
heavy bleeding--one of the most common  
and bothersome symptoms4  7#c7 ,the     
pain1 discomfort1 stress1 and other     
physical and emotional symptoms of      
living with fibroids may significantly  
interfere with a woman's quality of     
life1 compromising her ability to       
function normally or work or care for   
her family1 and may lead to more severe 
health and wellness issues4  7#d7 ,the  
development of uterine fibroids is a    
common and significant health problem1  
affecting women1 primarily of           
reproductive age1 across all ages1      
racial backgrounds1 and socioeconomic   
levels4  7#e7 ,most women will          
experience uterine fibroids by the age  
of #ej1 yet few data exist describing   
the overall patient experience with     
fibroids4 ,women with fibroids or       

symptoms suggestive of fibroids         
experience significant distress that    
reduces quality of life and many women  
are likely undiagnosed1 underscoring the
 need for improved awareness and        
education4  7#f7 ,minority women are    
more likely to develop uterine fibroids4
 ,it is estimated that more than #hj    
percent of ,african-,american women and 
about #gj percent of ,caucasian women   
develop fibroids by the time they reach 
menopause4 ,african-,american women have
 also been shown to have more severe    
symptoms and develop early-onset uterine
 fibroids that develop into larger      
tumors4  7#g7 ,the exact number of      
affected women is unknown1 because only 
one out of #d women who have a uterine  
fibroid tumor exhibit symptoms severe   
enough to require treatment4  7#h7      
,current research and available data do 
not provide adequate information on the 
rates of prevalence and incidence of    
fibroids in ,asian1 ,hispanic1 and      
,african-,american minority women4      

,there is no quantitative data available
 in regard to the costs associated with 
treating fibroids1 and the methods by   
which fibroids may be prevented in these
 women available4  7#i7 ,symptomatic    
uterine fibroids can cause heavy        
menstrual bleeding1 pain1 and           
reproductive problems1 including        
infertility4 ,women with uterine        
fibroids are much more likely to        
miscarry during early pregnancy than    
women without them4  7#aj7 ,according to
 the ,evidence ,report ,summary on the  
,management of ,uterine ,fibroids1 as   
compiled by the ,agency for ,healthcare 
,research and ,quality of the           
,department of ,health and ,human       
,services1 there is a remarkable lack of
 high-quality evidence supporting the   
effectiveness of most interventions for 
symptomatic fibroids4  7#aa7 ,the       
presence of symptomatic uterine fibroids
 is the most common reason for          
hysterectomies1 accounting for          
approximately one-third of              

hysterectomies1 or #bjj1jjj procedures  
annually4 ,twenty-two percent of        
,african-,american women and #g percent 
of ,caucasian women have hysterectomies 
as a result of uterine fibroids4 ,lack  
of patient and provider awareness of    
less invasive alternatives to           
hysterectomies lead to an estimated     
#hj1jjj to #abj1jjj unnecessary         
hysterectomies annually4 ,uterine       
fibroids are also the leading cause of  
hospitalization related to a            
gynecological disorder4  7#ab7 ,the     
personal and societal costs of uterine  
fibroids in the ,united ,states are     
significant4 ,uterine fibroid tumors    
have been estimated to cost the ,united 
,states #e1ijj1jjj1jjj to               
#cd1djj1jjj1jjj annually4 ,the annual   
direct costs1 including surgery1        
hospital admissions1 outpatient visits1 
and medications1 were estimated at      
#d1ajj1jjj1jjj to #i1djj1jjj1jjj        
annually4 ,estimated lost work-hour     
costs ranged from #a1eej1jjj1jjj to     

#ag1bjj1jjj1jjj annually4 ,obstetric    
outcomes that were attributed to fibroid
 tumors resulted in costs of            
#bch1jjj1jjj to #g1gfj1jjj1jjj annually4
  #c4 ,research with respect to uterine 
fibroids  7a7 ,research ,the ,director  
of the ,national ,institutes of ,health 
7in this section referred to as the     
,director of ,,nih7 shall expand1       
intensify1 and coordinate programs for  
the conduct and support of research with
 respect to uterine fibroids4  7b7      
,administration and coordination ,the   
,director of ,,nih1 acting through      
,director of the ,office of ,research on
 ,women's ,health1 shall carry out      
research conducted pursuant to          
subsection 7a71 in coordination with the
 appropriate institutes1 offices1 and   
centers of the ,national ,institutes of 
,health1 including the ,national        
,institute of ,child ,health and ,human 
,development1 the ,national ,institute  
of ,environmental ,health ,sciences1 the
 ,office of ,women's ,health1 the       

,office of ,minority ,health1 and the   
,national ,center on ,minority ,health  
and ,health ,disparities1 and any other 
relevant ,federal agency1 as determined 
by the ,director4  7c7 ,authorization of
 appropriations ,for the purpose of     
carrying out this section1 there are    
authorized to be appropriated           
#cj1jjj1jjj for each of fiscal years    
#bjba through #bjbe4  #d4 ,research with
 respect to ,medicaid coverage of       
uterine fibroids treatment  7a7         
,research ,the ,administrator of the    
,centers for ,medicare  ,medicaid       
,services 7referred to in this section  
as the ,administrator7 shall expand the 
,chronic ,conditions ,data ,warehouse   
research database of such ,centers for  
,medicare  ,medicaid ,services to       
collect data on items and services      
furnished to women diagnosed with       
uterine fibroids and fibroids-related   
symptoms under a ,state plan 7or a      
waiver of such a plan7 under the        
,medicaid program under title ,,xix of  

the ,social ,security ,act 7#db         
,u4,s4,c4 #acif et seq47 or under a     
,state child health plan 7or a waiver of
 such a plan7 under the ,children's     
,health ,insurance ,program under title 
,,xxi of such ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4       
#acig;aa et seq47 for the treatment of  
such fibroids and symptoms for purposes 
of assessing the frequency at which such
 women are furnished such items and     
services4  7b7 ,report  7#a7 ,in general
 ,not later than the date that is one   
year after the date of the enactment of 
this ,act1 the ,administrator shall     
submit to ,congress a report on the     
amount of ,federal and ,state           
expenditures with respect to items and  
services furnished for the treatment of 
uterine fibroids and fibroids-related   
symptoms under ,state plans 7or waivers 
of such plans7 under the ,medicaid      
program under such title ,,xix and      
,state child health plans 7or waivers of
 such plans7 under the ,children's      
,health ,insurance ,program under such  

title ,,xxi4  7#b7 ,coordination ,the   
,administrator shall coordinate the     
development and submission of the report
 required under paragraph 7#a7 with each
 of the following3 7,a7 ,within the     
,centers for ,medicare  ,medicaid       
,services-- 7i7 the ,office of ,minority
 ,health2  7ii7 the ,center for         
,medicaid and ,,chip ,services2  7iii7  
the ,office of ,enterprise ,data and    
,analytics2 and  7iv7 any other office  
or center determined appropriate by the 
,administrator4  7,b7 ,any other        
relevant ,federal agency1 as determined 
by the ,administrator4  7c7             
,authorization of appropriations ,for   
the purpose of carrying out this        
section1 there are authorized to be     
appropriated such sums as may be        
necessary for each of the fiscal years  
#bjba through #bjbe4  #e4 ,education and
 dissemination of information with      
respect to uterine fibroids  7a7        
,uterine fibroids public education      
program ,the ,secretary of ,health and  

,human ,services1 acting through the    
,director of the ,centers for ,disease  
,control and ,prevention1 shall develop 
and disseminate to the public           
information regarding uterine fibroids1 
including information on-- 7#a7 the     
awareness1 incidence1 and prevalence of 
uterine fibroids among women1 including 
all minority women2  7#b7 the elevated  
risk for minority women to develop      
uterine fibroids2 and  7#c7 the         
availability1 as medically appropriate1 
of the range of treatment options for   
symptomatic uterine fibroids1 including 
non-hysterectomy treatments and         
procedures4  7b7 ,dissemination of      
information ,the ,secretary may         
disseminate information under subsection
 7a7 directly or through arrangements   
with intra-agency initiatives1 nonprofit
 organizations1 consumer groups1        
institutions of higher education 7as    
defined in section #aja of the ,higher  
,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 
#ajja771 or ,federal1 ,state1 or local  

public private partnerships4  7c7       
,authorization of appropriations ,for   
the purpose of carrying out this        
section1 there are authorized to be     
appropriated such sums as may be        
necessary for each of fiscal years #bjba
 through #bjbe4  #f4 ,information to    
health care providers with respect to   
uterine fibroids  7a7 ,dissemination of 
information ,the ,secretary of ,health  
and ,human ,services1 acting through the
 ,administrator of the ,health          
,resources and ,services ,administration
 and the ,director of the ,agency for   
,healthcare ,research and ,quality      
shall1 in consultation and in accordance
 with guidelines from relevant medical  
societies1 develop and disseminate to   
health care providers information on    
uterine fibroids for the purpose of     
ensuring that health care providers     
remain informed about current           
information on uterine fibroids4 ,such  
information shall include the elevated  
risk for minority women to develop      

uterine fibroids and the range of       
available options for the treatment of  
symptomatic uterine fibroids1 including 
non-hysterectomy drugs and devices      
approved under the ,federal ,food1      
,drug1 and ,cosmetic ,act 7#ba ,u4,s4,c4
 #cja et seq474  7b7 ,authorization of  
appropriations ,for the purpose of      
carrying out this section1 there are    
authorized to be appropriated such sums 
as may be necessary for each of the     
fiscal years #bjba through #bjbe4  #g4  
,definition ,in this ,act1 the term     
minority women means women who are      
members of a racial and ethnic minority 
group1 as defined in section #agjg7;g7  
of the ,public ,health ,service ,act    
7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #cjju-#f7;g774