Accelerating the End of Breast Cancer Act of 2013 - Establishes the Commission to Accelerate the End of Breast Cancer to help end breast cancer by January 1, 2020.
Directs the Commission to identify, recommend, and promote initiatives, partnerships, and research within the public and private sectors, basic and applied sciences, and epidemiology that can be turned into strategies to prevent breast cancer and breast cancer metastasis while giving priority to those that are: (1) not prioritized within the public sector, and (2) unlikely to be achieved by the private sector due to technical and financial uncertainty.
Requires the Commission to: (1) submit within six months to the President and to the relevant congressional committees a description of the Commission's strategic plan; (2) submit an annual report to the President, Congress, and the public; and (3) ensure that its activities are coordinated with, and do not duplicate the efforts of, programs and laboratories of other government agencies.
Directs the President to enter into an agreement with the Institute of Medicine to evaluate the Commission's progress.
Terminates the Commission on June 1, 2020.
[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 865 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
113th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 865
To provide for the establishment of a Commission to Accelerate the End
of Breast Cancer.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 6, 2013
Mr. Whitehouse (for himself, Mr. Heller, Mr. Warner, Mr. Grassley, Mr.
Brown, Mr. Reed, Mr. Begich, Mr. Casey, and Mr. Franken) introduced the
following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for the establishment of a Commission to Accelerate the End
of Breast Cancer.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Accelerating the
End of Breast Cancer Act of 2013''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as
follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Establishment.
Sec. 4. Purpose; duties.
Sec. 5. Membership.
Sec. 6. Powers.
Sec. 7. Chairperson; program managers.
Sec. 8. Coordination and nonduplication.
Sec. 9. Evaluation of the Commission.
Sec. 10. Authorization of funding.
Sec. 11. Termination.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) In the United States, the chance of a woman developing
breast cancer during her lifetime has increased from 1 in 11 in
1975 to 1 in 8 today.
(2) Worldwide, breast cancer is the most frequently
diagnosed cancer in women with 1,300,000 cases each year.
Breast cancer is also the leading cause of cancer death in
women, with more than 438,000 women dying from the disease
worldwide in 2010, a 37.5 percent increase since 1990.
(3) More than 90 percent of deaths from breast cancer are
caused by metastasis, which occurs when cancerous cells spread
to other organs or bone.
(4) The National Cancer Institute estimated that breast
cancer care in the United States cost $16,500,000,000 in 2010,
and cost the Nation $12,100,000,000 in lost productivity.
(5) Over the past 40 years, very little has improved the
incidence, morbidity, and mortality rates of breast cancer.
(6) In recognition of the complexity of breast cancer,
experts have identified the need to transform how research is
conducted by engaging investigators from many disciplines.
(7) Advances in understanding the progression of breast
cancer, particularly metastasis, have the potential to
translate to better understanding and preventing the spread of
other types of cancer.
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT.
There shall be established a commission to be known as the
Commission to Accelerate the End of Breast Cancer (in this Act referred
to as the ``Commission'').
SEC. 4. PURPOSE; DUTIES.
(a) Purpose.--The purpose of the Commission shall be to help end
breast cancer by January 1, 2020.
(b) Duties.--
(1) In general.--The Commission shall identify, recommend,
and promote initiatives, partnerships, and research within the
public and private sectors, basic and applied sciences, and
epidemiology that can be turned into strategies to prevent
breast cancer and breast cancer metastasis.
(2) Priority.--The Commission shall give priority to
initiatives, partnerships, and research that are--
(A) not prioritized within the public sector; and
(B) unlikely to be achieved by the private sector
due to technical and financial uncertainty.
(c) Strategic Plan.--Not later than 6 months after the appointment
of the initial members of the Commission, the Commission shall submit
to the President and to the relevant authorizing and appropriations
committees of Congress, a description of the Commission's strategic
plan to advance the purpose described in subsection (a).
(d) Annual Report.--Not later than January 15, 2014, and annually
thereafter, the Commission shall submit an annual report to the
President, Congress, and the public--
(1) describing the Commission's activities under this
section, including its progress in achieving the purpose
described in subsection (a); and
(2) containing a full financial report, including a line
item report of the Commission's expenditures for the preceding
year.
SEC. 5. MEMBERSHIP.
(a) Number; Appointment.--The Commission shall be composed of not
more than 10 members who shall be appointed by the President, with the
advice and consent of the Senate, not later than 60 days after the date
of enactment of this Act, in accordance with this section.
(b) Representation.--
(1) In general.--Each member of the Commission shall be
appointed to represent one of the following 3 categories:
(A) Individuals who represent the interests of
varied disciplines within the biomedical research
field.
(B) Individuals who represent the relevant varied
disciplines outside of the biomedical research field.
(C) Patient advocates, including individuals who--
(i) represent a patient-led, patient-
centered organization with a patient
constituency either directly related to or
relevant to breast cancer; and
(ii) are trained, knowledgeable, and
prepared to participate in the decision-making
process of science and medicine.
(2) Representation of membership categories.--Of the
members of the Commission--
(A) at least 1, but not more than 3, shall be
appointed to represent the category described in
paragraph (1)(A);
(B) at least 1, but not more than 3, shall be
appointed to represent the category described in
paragraph (1)(B); and
(C) at least 2, but not more than 4, shall be
appointed to represent the category described in
paragraph (1)(C).
(c) Terms.--
(1) In general.--Each member of the Commission shall be
appointed for a term of 3 years and may be reappointed.
(2) Vacancies.--Any member of the Commission appointed to
fill a vacancy occurring before the expiration of the term for
which the member's predecessor was appointed shall be appointed
only for the remainder of that term. A member may serve after
the expiration of that member's term until a successor has
taken office. A vacancy in the Commission shall be filled in
the manner in which the original appointment was made and shall
not affect the power of the remaining members to execute the
duties of the Commission.
(d) Quorum.--Three members of the Commission shall constitute a
quorum.
SEC. 6. POWERS.
The Commission shall have the following powers:
(1) Hearings and other activities.--For the purpose of
carrying out its duties, the Commission may hold such hearings
and undertake such other activities as the Commission
determines to be necessary to carry out its duties.
(2) Detail of federal employees.--Upon the request of the
Commission, the head of any Federal agency is authorized to
detail, without reimbursement, any of the personnel of such
agency to the Commission to assist the Commission in carrying
out its duties. Any such detail shall not interrupt or
otherwise affect the civil service status or privileges of the
Federal employee.
(3) Technical assistance.--Upon the request of the
Commission, the head of a Federal agency may provide such
technical assistance to the Commission as the Commission
determines to be necessary to carry out its duties.
(4) Use of mails.--The Commission may use the United States
mails in the same manner and under the same conditions as
Federal agencies.
(5) Obtaining information.--The Commission may secure
directly from any Federal agency information necessary to
enable it to carry out its duties, if the information may be
disclosed under section 552 of title 5, United States Code.
Upon request of the Chairperson of the Commission, the head of
such agency shall furnish such information to the Commission.
(6) Administrative support services.--Upon the request of
the Commission, the Administrator of General Services shall
provide to the Commission on a reimbursable basis such
administrative support services as the Commission may request.
SEC. 7. CHAIRPERSON; PROGRAM MANAGERS.
(a) Chairperson.--
(1) Designation.--Of the members of the Commission
appointed under section 5(a), the President shall at the time
of the appointment, designate one such member to serve as the
Chairperson of the Commission.
(2) Responsibilities.--The responsibilities of the
Chairperson shall include--
(A) approving areas of study of the Commission
based on criteria including scientific and technical
merit, innovation, and impact;
(B) developing criteria (including benchmarks) for
assessing, and overseeing the assessment of, the
progress of areas of study of the Commission;
(C) terminating areas of study of the Commission
that are not achieving the purpose described in section
4(a);
(D) designating members of the Commission to act as
program managers as described in subsection (b); and
(E) appointing staff as necessary to aid in
carrying out the purpose described in section 4(a).
(b) Program Managers.--
(1) In general.--The Chairperson of the Commission may
designate members of the Commission who may act as program
managers to oversee one or more areas of study of the
Commission.
(2) Responsibilities.--A member designated under paragraph
(1) shall, with respect to one or more areas of study, be
responsible for the following:
(A) Recommending novel proposals, projects, and
collaborations based on scientific and technical merit
to achieve the purpose described in section 4(a) with a
focus on strategies for the primary prevention of
breast cancer, and methods to prevent breast cancer
metastasis. Program directors may--
(i) convene workshops and confer with
experts in both the public and private sector;
(ii) identify areas of study;
(iii) identify all areas where resources
could be leveraged; and
(iv) carry out other functions of the
Commission that are approved by the Chairperson
and that the Chairperson deems necessary to
carry out the purpose described in section
4(a).
(B) Working with relevant Federal agencies to
identify areas of concurrent interests in order to
maximize Federal investment and stimulate collaborative
projects.
(C) Monitoring the progress of areas of study and
recommend restructure or termination.
SEC. 8. COORDINATION AND NONDUPLICATION.
To the maximum extent practicable, the Commission shall ensure that
the activities of the Commission are coordinated with, and do not
duplicate the efforts of, programs and laboratories of other government
agencies.
SEC. 9. EVALUATION OF THE COMMISSION.
(a) In General.--The President shall enter into an agreement with
the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences under
which the Institute, after the Commission has been in operation for 3
years, shall evaluate the Commission's progress towards achieving the
purpose described in section 4(a).
(b) Inclusions.--The evaluation under subsection (a) shall
include--
(1) a recommendation on whether the Commission should be
continued or terminated; and
(2) a description of lessons learned from operation of the
Commission.
(c) Availability.--On completion of the evaluation under subsection
(a), the Commission shall make the evaluation available to the Congress
and the public.
SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF FUNDING.
(a) Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out the purpose of
this Act, there are authorized to be appropriated--
(1) $8,000,000 for fiscal year 2013;
(2) $12,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2014 and 2015; and
(3) such sums as may be necessary for each fiscal year
thereafter until the Commission is terminated.
(b) Limitation.--None of the amounts appropriated for a fiscal year
under subsection (a) shall be used for the operation or construction of
any laboratories or pilot plants.
SEC. 11. TERMINATION.
The Commission shall terminate on June 1, 2020.
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
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