Dr. Emmanuel Bilirakis and Honorable Jennifer Wexton National Plan to End Parkinson's Act

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Dr. Emmanuel Bilirakis and Honorable Jennifer Wexton National Plan to End Parkinson's Act.

These past few years, I have been honored to champion this legislation on behalf of the more than 1 million Americans living with Parkinson's.

I first learned more in-depth about Parkinson's from a friend who suffered with the disease. When the opportunity arose to partner with Congressman Bilirakis on this meaningful effort, I jumped right in and made it my personal mission to get this done on behalf of the millions of people living with Parkinson's.

Mr. Speaker, currently, there are no treatments to cure, prevent, or significantly slow down its progression. Parkinson's is the second most common neurological disease and is, unfortunately, growing and growing fast.

Mr. Speaker, I will highlight that there is hope on the horizon. Earlier this year, researchers discovered a new biomarker for Parkinson's disease. This is an exciting step forward, but much more research and coordination is needed.

Our bipartisan, no-cost legislation will, for the first time, unite our Federal Government in a mission to cure and prevent Parkinson's, alleviate financial and health burdens on American families, and reduce government spending over time.

This pioneering legislation is greatly needed. This bill will bring Federal stakeholders and non-Federal experts together to implement a national plan to prevent and cure the disease, improve diagnosis and treatment options, and lessen the burden for caregivers and their families.

The bill's text is modeled off the successful National Alzheimer's Project model which brought together many parts of our Federal Government to improve the Federal response.

Once signed into law, this bill will do for Parkinson's what the national plan did for Alzheimer's and bring together coordination, care, and research all to help those with Parkinson's, as well their loved ones.

This will help bring a strong focus on a cure, a treatment, and also prevention. It will shine a needed light on the suffering related to Parkinson's.

Sadly, we recognize that environmental triggers are likely a part of Parkinson's, but so much is still unknown. More research and more coordination are critical to getting answers to these questions.

I thank The Michael J. Fox Foundation for everything that it does, but especially all of the work that they provided on behalf of this bill.

I thank the New York-based groups and advocates who stood by my side demanding action on this bill and giving a face to Parkinson's. That mission and their journey was over a series of years.

Together with patients, with families, and with medical professionals we learned about the challenges of Parkinson's and why this bill is so desperately and urgently needed.

I thank my good friend, Gus Bilirakis, for working on the National Plan to End Parkinson's Act with me. It is an honor to work with the gentleman on this, and I know how much this means to him personally. I thank him for his relentless work to push this forward. The loss of his brother and mother-in-law in this last year, indeed, has been a devastating blow for their family. I admire how my friend has channeled that pain and committed to making a difference so that we can bring hope to those with Parkinson's.

I thank Chair Rodgers and Representative Pallone for staying with us and finding the resolution to move this meaningful bill forward. I thank Congressman Guthrie and Congresswoman Eshoo for their support, as well.

Additionally, I thank our committee staff for their hard work on bringing this together. Special thanks go to Tiffany Guarascio, Una Lee, Waverly Gordon, Shana Beavin, and Jacquelyn Bolen for all of their efforts.

From my personal office, I thank Emily Silverberg, our legislative director, for the resolve to continue until we pass that finish line.

I thank Congressman Bilirakis' team, especially Chris Jones, for her hard work on this effort.

I also thank our good friend, Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton. We love Jennifer. She has been there. She has faced a devastating diagnosis, and she not only joined this fight but became one of the most vocal advocates fighting for the Parkinson's community.

Mr. Speaker, as many of us know, Congresswoman Wexton was first diagnosed with PSP this year which she describes as a kind of Parkinson's on steroids.

Today and every day, Jennifer gives a face to Parkinson's, and she is changing the future for those who have not yet received the diagnosis and those who will benefit from the National Plan to End Parkinson's. I thank my friend for her advocacy and for bravely sharing publicly about her journey. I value her friendship and am in awe of her determination and her journey. I understand that receiving a Parkinson's diagnosis has got to be truly devastating for individuals and their loved ones.

It is, indeed, incumbent upon Congress to ensure Americans know they will be supported during this frightening and life-altering time. Our legislation does just that and offers a dose of hope.

This is a commonsense, compassionate bill that will establish a robust response to address Parkinson's and ensure that patients and their families receive the care that they need and deserve. By moving this forward, we will make a positive difference, improve lives, and even save lives.

For the millions of Americans living with Parkinson's, as well as their loved ones, I hope this brings much-needed hope. Hope has finally arrived. Hope is on the way, and that has been the message of this whole effort.

To all my colleagues, I thank them for their strong support and commitment to the Parkinson's community. I urge my colleagues to support this meaningful bill. It will make a difference totally to those who are impacted and to the Nation.

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Mr. TONKO. Barragan), who is an active member on our Energy and Commerce Committee and a very strong supporter of this legislation.

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Mr. TONKO. McClellan), who is a great supporter of this legislation.
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Mr. TONKO. Mr. Speaker, this is a very emotional journey, and in the words of Jennifer Wexton, this could happen to anyone, so any one of us could be touched by the impact of this legislation that will deliver efforts to search for better diagnoses, sounder treatment, and ultimately find a cure, but it is also about hope, and hope rings eternally here with this effort so that folks like Jennifer will know and folks from Gus Bilirakis' family will know that America cares, that she cares deeply.

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