103 STAT. 66 PUBLIC LAW 101-34—MAY 25, 1989 Public Law 101-34 101st Congress Joint Resolution May 25, 1989 [H.J. Res. 170] Designating May 1989, as "National Digestive Disease Awareness Month". Whereas digestive diseases rank third among illnesses in total economic cost in the United States; Whereas digestive diseases represent one of the Nation's most seri- ous health problems in terms of discomfort and pain, personal expenditures for treatment, working hours lost, and mortality; Whereas twenty million Americans suffer from chronic digestive diseases; Whereas more than fourteen million cases of acute digestive dis- eases are treated in this country each year, including one-third of all malignancies and some of the most common acute infections; Whereas more Americans are hospitalized with digestive diseases than any other type of disease; Whereas digestive diseases necessitate 25 per centum of all surgical operations; Whereas digestive diseases are one of the most prevalent causes of disability in the work force; Whereas in the United States digestive diseases cause yearly expenditures of over $17 billion in direct health care costs and a total annual economic burden of nearly $50 billion; Whereas more than one hundred different digestive diseases, and other disorders of the gastrointestinal tract, each cause more than two hundred thousand deaths each year; Whereas there has been interest on the part of the research commu- nity in the causes, cures, prevention, and clinical treatment of digestive diseases and related nutritional problems; Whereas the people of the United States should recognize preven- tion and treatment of digestive diseases as a major health priority; Whereas national organizations, such as the Digestive Disease Na- tional Coalition, are committed to increasing awareness and understanding of digestive diseases in the health care community and among members of the general public; Whereas the National Institutes of Health, through the National Digestive Disease Information Clearinghouse and the National Digestive Diseases Advisory Board, is committed to encouraging and coordinating such educational efforts;
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