Mr. President, today, I am pleased to introduce the Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Reauthorization Act of 2026 with Senators Tim Scott, Tina Smith, and James Lankford. Our bipartisan bill will…
Mr. President, today, I am pleased to introduce the Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Reauthorization Act of 2026 with Senators Tim Scott, Tina Smith, and James Lankford.
Our bipartisan bill will reauthorize the C.W. Bill Young National Marrow Donor Program and the National Cord Blood Inventory, which help individuals diagnosed with leukemia and lymphomas, sickle cell anemia, and rare genetic blood disorders find suitable bone marrow or umbilical cord blood donors.
More than 18,000 individuals are diagnosed with diseases like blood cancer and sickle cell disease each year and hope for a blood stem cell or bone marrow transplant to help treat or even cure their disease. Since the 1980s, the public registries created under these programs have been a lifeline for the more than 75 percent of Americans who do not have a matched donor in their families. By strengthening and enhancing the important programs operating these registries, many more Americans will be afforded the opportunity to find a match if they are ever in need.
I look forward to swift consideration of this legislation in the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee and working toward passage in the full Senate.
Mr. President, I am pleased to be introducing the Educating Medical Professionals and Optimizing Workforce Efficiency and Readiness, EMPOWER, for Health Act with Senator Murkowski. Our bipartisan legislation would reauthorize funding for the title VII health professions programs to help strengthen the distribution, quality, and diversity of the health professions workforce so it is better prepared to meet the country's evolving and emerging health care needs.
The title VII health professions programs have a longstanding history of increasing the supply of primary care professionals, expanding access to care in rural and urban underserved areas, and developing a workforce that reflects the Nation's diversity and the needs of patients. At a time when the country is facing persistent health provider shortages, it is critical that we continue to support the programs that build our healthcare workforce, such as scholarships for disadvantaged students, public health and preventive medicine, geriatrics training, area health education centers, oral health training, and primary care medicine.
These education and training programs guide current and aspiring health professionals to high-demand careers in areas of greatest need, and this legislation will take an important step in ensuring that these programs can continue to serve students and patients for years to come. Our legislation addresses some ongoing challenges with the Pediatric Subspecialty Loan Repayment Program, clarifying eligibility requirements and making it easier for qualified pediatric subspecialists to apply.
I want to thank the stakeholders supporting this bill, including AIDS Action Baltimore, AIDS Foundation Chicago, the AIDS Institute, the AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Association of Medical Colleges, the American Public Health Association, the American Society for Microbiology, the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health, Big Cities Health Coalition, the Children's Hospital Association, Fast-Track Health, the Gerontological Society of America, the HIV Dental Alliance, the HIV Medicine Association, the Infectious Diseases Society of America, the International Association of Providers of AIDS Care, the National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors, the National Association of County & City Health Officials, the National Association for Geriatric Education, the National Hispanic Medical Association, NMAC, the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, and the Society of Infectious Diseases Pharmacists and I urge my colleagues to join me and Senator Murkowski in working to pass the EMPOWER for Health Act this year.
