Military Construction and Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2017

Floor Speech

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Mr. FITZPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, I want to start by recognizing my colleague from Pennsylvania (Mr. Dent), the chairman of the subcommittee, for his diligence and his hard work in bringing this important bill to the floor and, more importantly, for his work on the bill, and listening to ideas coming from both sides of the aisle, and his fairness in considering all ideas as part of this bill. So I thank the gentleman for that.

I rise this evening in support of an amendment that is common sense. It is a no-brainer. What this amendment would do is say, if a medical device is under review by the FDA over concerns of its harmful impacts on women, the Federal Government shouldn't be spending taxpayer dollars to offer it to our Nation's veterans.

The medical device I am referring to is the permanent sterilization device, Essure. Essure is a permanent sterilization device that was approved by the FDA in 2002. However, since it was first approved, this device has caused irreparable harm to tens of thousands of women and their families.

FDA data shows that Essure has caused the death of at least four women and nearly 300 fetal deaths. Additionally, tens of thousands of women have reported other symptoms which are debilitating.

Over 25,000 women have joined together on Facebook to share their stories of how the Essure device has ruined their lives. They call themselves the Essure Sisters. They came together as a group because nobody believed them--for many, not even their doctors. They were told that this device was safe and there was no way the device caused their pain and other symptoms. But that proved to be wrong. We don't need another study. Their pain is real. Their stories are real. They have been ignored by their doctors, by the device manufacturer, and by the Food and Drug Administration.

I rise today as a voice for these women, to tell this Chamber that their stories are real, that their pain is real, and that their fight is real. Working with them over the last year, we have been able to force the FDA to call for yet another review of this flawed device, and this request was made by Democrats and Republicans in this Chamber.

Yet the product remains available, sometimes aggressively pushed. And, as it relates to this appropriations bill, Essure remains on the list of federally purchased devices. We know that this device has already harmed female veterans.

I want to give a direct quote from an Essure Sister and Operation Enduring Freedom veteran: ``I still live in massive chronic pain, and I'm on pain meds every day of my life. I cannot do the things I used to do with my children and my husband. Each day that I live with this newfound pain and suffering, I grow more and more disgusted at the fact that both he and I traveled to the war multiple times and made it home, only to have a device forced upon us that would ruin our lives and my health.''

Mr. Chairman, this amendment is not about women's reproductive decisions or a debate about contraceptives. It is about protecting our female veterans from being harmed by a device that we know has ruined the lives of thousands across this Nation. All I am saying is we should not allow the Department of Veterans Affairs to purchase and implant this dangerous device in our Nation's veterans.

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Mr. FITZPATRICK. In closing, Mr. Chairman, I would say, with all due respect, this is about a dangerous medical device, and there are men and women on both sides of the aisle here in the House of Representatives that have called on the FDA to withdraw the device from the market. There are other options.

Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the time on the floor tonight.

I yield back the balance of my time.

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