Palmetto State News

This week, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed a resolution introduced by Senators Tim Scott and Cory Booker to designate September 2024 as Sickle Cell Disease Awareness Month. The initiative aims to raise awareness about sickle cell disease (SCD), which is recognized as the most common inherited blood disorder in the United States.

The resolution received bipartisan support, with cosponsors including Senators James Lankford, Marco Rubio, Cindy Hyde-Smith, Todd Young, Elizabeth Warren, Tom Carper, Sherrod Brown, Debbie Stabenow, Alex Padilla, and Raphael Warnock.

Senator Scott emphasized the prevalence of SCD among Black newborns in the U.S., stating: “Sickle cell disease is the most common inherited blood disorder in the U.S., affecting one in every 365 Black newborns. Yet despite the prevalence of SCD, research and treatments remain far too limited. With the passage of this resolution, we commit to raising awareness and seeking out legislation that will help our medical community fight—and, one day, cure—this painful disease.”

Senator Booker highlighted both health care justice and racial justice aspects of SCD: “Sickle cell disease affects an estimated 100,000 individuals in the United States and is the most common inherited blood disorder in our country. This disease, which disproportionately affects Black Americans, is at the intersection of both health care justice and racial justice. I am glad to see the passage of this resolution designating Sickle Cell Disease Awareness Month – my hope it that it will help educate more people about sickle cell and the urgent need to expand access to quality care and effective treatments for those suffering from this disease. I thank Senator Scott for his collaboration on this important issue.”

In related efforts earlier this year, Senators Scott and Booker introduced the Sickle Cell Disease Comprehensive Care Act. This proposed legislation would enable state Medicaid programs to offer comprehensive care for SCD patients using a health home model.

Additionally, Senator Scott's Sickle Cell Disease and Other Heritable Blood Disorders Research, Surveillance, Prevention, and Treatment Act of 2023 was approved by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) on June 15. The bill reauthorizes funding for HRSA’s Sickle Cell Disease Treatment Demonstration Program through fiscal year 2028. It aims to provide HRSA with greater flexibility in offering technical assistance and educational materials swiftly in response to emerging developments like gene therapies for treating sickle cell disease. The House of Representatives approved this bill on September 23.