United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2005
Geriatric and Chronic Care Management Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) coverage of geriatric assessments and chronic care management services for eligible individuals. Directs the Secretary to study and report to Congress on: (1) the effectiveness of the different payment methodologies applicable with respect to chronic care management services developed and implemented under this Act; (2) the effectiveness of the pay for performance programs to serve Medicare beneficiaries with multiple chronic conditions, including dementia; (3) process measures and outcomes for Medicare beneficiaries with multiple chronic illnesses, including dementia; (4) the cost-effectiveness and quality associated with chronic care management under the Medicare program; and (5) the feasibility of broadening and incorporating the findings of the Assessing Care of Vulnerable Elders (ACOVE) study into the Medicare program.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2005
Unaccompanied Alien Child Protection Act of 2005 - Addresses the care and custody of unaccompanied alien children, defined as children under the age of 18 with no lawful immigration status and no parent or legal guardian in the United States who is available to provide care and physical custody. Directs immigration officers who find such children at U.S. land borders or ports of entry to permit them to withdraw their applications for admission and return to their country of nationality or last habitual residence in certain circumstances. States that such children shall have the right to consult with a consular officer prior to repatriation and with the Office of Refugee Resettlement (the Office) at the Department of Health and Human Services. Gives the Office jurisdiction over the care and custody of all other such children, including trafficking victims, except those charged with or convicted of felonies (excluding offenses proscribed by the Immigration and Nationality Act) or who threaten national security, whose custody and care is vested in the Directorate of Border and Transportation Security (the Directorate) at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Requires the Secretary of Homeland Security (the Secretary) to notify the Office promptly of the apprehension or discovery of such children. Specifies the order of preference for placing such children, subject to the discretion of the Director of the Office (the Director) and a suitability assessment by the State of the child's proposed residence or a voluntary agency contracted with the Office. Prohibits the placement of such children in adult detention facilities or in facilities housing delinquent children unless they exhibit violent or criminal behavior. Requires the Director and the Secretary to: (1) promulgate regulations incorporating standards for the conditions of detention of such children; and (2) develop procedures prohibiting the unreasonable use of restraints, solitary confinement, or pat or strip searches. Expresses the sense of Congress that the U.S. Government should undertake efforts to ensure that it does not repatriate children in its custody into settings that would threaten their life and safety. Requires: (1) the Secretary of State to include in each year's State Department Country Report on Human Rights an assessment of the degree to which each country protects children from smugglers and traffickers; and (2) the Directorate to consult that report and the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000: Trafficking in Persons Report in assessing whether to repatriate an unaccompanied alien child. Requires the Director to develop procedures for promptly determining the age of aliens in the custody of DHS or the Office when age is at issue. Authorizes the Director to appoint qualified and duly trained guardians ad litem for such children. Specifies the duties and powers of such guardians ad litem. Requires the Director to: (1) provide professional training for such guardians ad litem; and (2) implement a pilot program for their appointment. States that the Director should ensure that all such children in the Custody of the Office or the Directorate, except those being repatriated to a contiguous country, have competent counsel to represent them in immigration proceedings or matters. Requires the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) to develop and implement model guidelines for the legal representation of alien children in immigration proceedings. States that counsel shall: (1) have reasonable access to such children; (2) be given 24 hours advance notice of a transfer absent compelling and unusual circumstances; and (3) except in emergency situations involving the child's physical safety, be given prompt and adequate notice of all immigration matters affecting or involving such children. Bars such children in the custody of the Office from consenting to immigration actions, including voluntary departure, unless first afforded an opportunity to consult with counsel. Makes such guardian ad litem and counsel provisions applicable to all such children in Federal custody on, before, or after the effective date of this Act. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to specify that: (1) aliens seeking special immigrant juvenile (SIJ) status must be 18 years of age and under on the date of application; (2) court orders declaring such aliens dependent on a juvenile court located in the United States or placing them in the custody of a State entity due to abuse, neglect, abandonment or similar grounds shall be binding on the Secretary for purposes of SIJ adjudications; and (3) the Office must certify to the Director that SIJ classifications with respect to alien children in Federal custody have not been made solely to provide immigration benefits. Excludes presence without admission or parole as a ground for inadmissibility with regard to aliens seeking SIJ status. Authorizes the Secretary to waive certain additional grounds of inadmissibility. Makes the SIJ-related amendments of this Act applicable to all aliens who were in the United States before, on, or after enactment of this Act. Commends the (former) Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) for its issuance of the Guidelines for Children's Asylum Claims and encourages implementation of such guidelines by INS and its successor. Calls upon EOIR to adopt such guidelines in its handling of children's asylum claims. Requires the Secretary to provide periodic comprehensive training under such guidelines. Requires such children apprehended by the Directorate, except those subject to contiguous country rules, to be placed in removal proceedings. Exempts such children from certain bars to seeking asylum. Amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (HSA) to make the Director responsible for: (1) continued assessments of the suitability of placements of such children; and (2) ensuring that minimum standards of care are met with regard to such children who reside in settings that are alternatives to detention. States that the amendments to HSA made by this Act shall be effective as if enacted as part of HSA.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2005
Extends the U.S. Postal Service's authority to issue special postage stamps to help provide funding for breast cancer research through December 31, 2007.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2005
Combat Meth Act of 2005 - Authorizes funds to provide training to State and local prosecutors and law enforcement agents for investigation and prosecution of methamphetamine offenses, including a set-aside for prosecutors and law enforcement agents for rural communities. Amends: (1) the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to expand the public safety and community policing grant program to authorize the use of grant funds to hire personnel and purchase equipment to assist in enforcing and prosecuting methamphetamine offenses and in cleaning up methamphetamine-affected areas; (2) the Controlled Substances Act to add pseudoephedrine to schedule V; and (3) the Public Health Service Act to authorize grants for the development of drug endangered children rapid response teams and grants to local governments, Indian tribes, and nonprofit private entities to provide treatment for methamphetamine abuse. Directs the Attorney General to allocate funds for the hiring and training of special assistant U.S. attorneys. Authorizes the Attorney General, acting through the Bureau of Justice Assistance, to award grants to States to establish methamphetamine precursor monitoring programs.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2005
Loan Forgiveness for Head Start Teachers Act of 2005 - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to extend to certain Head Start teachers eligibility for cancellation of repayment obligations for specified types of student loans.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2005
Pharmaceutical Market Access Act of 2005 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to promulgate regulations permitting pharmacists, pharmacies, wholesalers, and individuals to import qualifying drugs from certain countries into the United States. Sets forth registration requirements for exporters. Requires the Secretary to: (1) educate consumers with regard to the availability of qualifying drugs for import for personal use; (2) inspect the facilities and records of importers and registered exporters to ensure compliance with this Act; and (3) establish a registration fee program to collect an annual fee from registered exporters. Deems a prescription drug to be misbranded unless the packaging of such drug complies with the requirements for counterfeit-resistant technologies. Prohibits: (1) failing to register in accordance with this Act; and (2) importing or offering to import a prescription drug in violation of a suspension order. Declares that selling or importing a patented drug in the United States that was first sold abroad by or under authority of the owner or licensee of the patent is not patent infringement. Prohibits drug manufacturers from discriminating against a person that engages in the importation of a prescription drug, including by charging higher prices or denying supplies of the drug. Allows the Secretary to suspend or terminate the registration of an exporter for failing to maintain substantial compliance with all registration conditions.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Expresses: (1) sympathy for the victims and families of the earthquake and tsunami that struck communities throughout Southeast Asia, South Asia, and Eastern Africa on December 26, 2004; and (2) gratitude and respect for the work of all aid and relief personnel, including U.S. military personnel. Supports President George W. Bush's pledge of $350,000,000 in direct financial assistance, and additional indirect assistance, through the dispatch of U.S. military assets and personnel and through substantial voluntary and annual contributions to international organizations and bodies. Commends the ongoing international relief effort. Recognizes that U.S. Government assistance will be greatly supplemented by private U.S. donations and volunteers. Supports the long-term U.S. commitment to provide financial aid and other assistance to the impacted region.
United States · United States Congress · 7 December 2004
Intercountry Adoption Reform Act of 2004 or ICARE Act - Establishes an Office of Intercountry Adoptions within the Department of State (DOS). Requires the President to appoint an Ambassador at Large to head the Office. Transfers to the Office all immigration functions with respect to intercountry adoptions currently performed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to grant automatic U.S. citizenship to internationally adopted children upon entry of a full and final adoption decree (thus dispensing with the need for such children to obtain visas). Creates a new W nonimmigrant visa category for children traveling to the United States to be adopted by U.S. citizens. Allows adopted children age 18 or under to claim an exception to immunization requirements for purposes of admissibility (currently limited to those age 10 or under). Redefines the term "adoptable child." Requires U.S. citizen adoptive parents to obtain approval of an adoption petition prior to issuance of a W visa or a full and final adoption decree. Provides that such petitions are subject to the terms applicable to orphan petitions. Directs the Secretary of State to issue regulations: (1) establishing an expedited reapproval process for families whose prior approvals to adopt have expired; and (2) governing the appeal of petition denials. Requires the Office to determine whether a child is an adoptable child, pursuant to specified procedures, as a prerequisite to the issuance of a W visa or a full and final adoption decree. Sets forth civil and criminal penalties for certain violations.
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 2004
Expresses support for the goals and ideas of National Time Out Day to promote the adoption of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations' universal protocol for preventing errors in the operating room. Congratulates perioperative nurses and representatives of surgical teams for working together to reduce medical errors.
United States · United States Congress · 11 October 2004
Protecting Our Communities by Making Returning Offenders Better Citizens Act of 2004 - Establishes within the Department of Justice the Office of Community Services. Requires the Office Director to: (1) develop and administer grant programs to prepare incarcerated persons for reentry into the community or to assist reentering offenders in their transition; and (2) make grants to nongovernmental entities that have expertise in providing such services. Authorizes the Director to award a grant to an eligible organization to establish a National Offender Reentry Initiative Clearinghouse. Requires the Director to award grants: (1) to State or local corrections agencies to provide services to incarcerated persons, including education, substance abuse treatment, and vocational skills training; (2) to consortiums of such agencies and to State or local parole or probation agencies to provide services to incarcerated persons who have not more than one year remaining of their sentence or to released offenders within 18 months after release; (3) to parole and probation agencies to provide offenders with services to help with their transition; and (4) to correctional, parole, or probation agencies and nongovernmental entities for community protection programs. Directs the Bureau of Prisons to provide each offender released from Federal prisons information on how to restore voting rights and other civil and civic rights. Earmarks specified funds for research, technical assistance, and training.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2004
Enhanced Second Chance Act of 2004: Community Safety Through Recidivism Prevention or Enhanced Second Chance Act of 2004 - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to reauthorize, rewrite, and expand provisions regarding adult and juvenile offender reentry demonstration projects, including by authorizing funds to: (1) provide structured post-release housing and transitional housing; (2) facilitate collaboration to promote the employment of people released from prison; and (3) establish or expand the use of reentry courts. Sets forth grant priorities and requirements, including that each State or local government recipient establish a Reentry Task Force or other relevant convening authority. Authorizes the Attorney General to make a grant to provide for the establishment of a National Adult and Juvenile Offender Reentry Resource Center. Directs the Attorney General to establish an interagency task force on Federal programs and activities relating to offender reentry. Authorizes the National Institute of Justice and the Bureau of Justice Statistics to conduct research on offender reentry. Directs: (1) the Secretary of Health and Human Services to review the role of State child protective services at the time of arrest and to establish services for the preservation of families impacted by the incarceration of a family member; (2) the Secretary of Labor to implement a program to educate employers about existing incentives to the hiring of former prisoners; and (3) the Department of Justice to modify existing procedures and policies to improve the transition of Federal prisoners into their communities.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2004
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow combat zone compensation (otherwise excludable from gross income) to be treated as earned income for purposes of the earned income tax credit.
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 2004
Declares that Congress: (1) recognizes the essential role of nuclear power in the national energy policy of the United States; and (2) supports the increased use of nuclear power and the construction and development of new and improved nuclear power generating plants as a means of contributing to national energy independence and maintaining a clean environment.
United States · United States Congress · 5 October 2004
American Bald Eagle Recovery and National Emblem Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury, in celebration of the recovery of the bald eagle, in commemoration of the 35th anniversary of the enactment of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, and the placement of the bald eagle on the endangered species list under such Act, to mint and issue not more than: (1) 100,000 $5 gold coins; (2) 500,000 $1 silver coins; and (3) 750,000 half dollar coins. Directs that the design of the coins be emblematic of the bald eagle and its history, natural biology, and national symbolism. Requires that sales of the coins include a surcharge of $35 per coin for the $5 coin, $10 for the $1 coin, and $3 for the half dollar coin, which shall be promptly paid by the Secretary to the American Eagle Foundation of Tennessee to: (1) establish an interest-bearing endowment called the American Eagle Fund as a permanent source of support for the care, monitoring, maintenance, and recovery of the bald eagle and its habitat in the United States; (2) make annual grants to Federal, State, and private eagle restoration, protection, and enhancement projects; (3) administer the Fund in an annual amount not to exceed the lesser of ten percent of the annual income of the Fund or $250,000; and (4) provide financial support for capital projects and for continuation and expansion of the Foundation's efforts to educate the American people about the bald eagle.
United States · United States Congress · 4 October 2004
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income hazard mitigation payments received under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act or the National Flood Insurance Act.
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 2004
Declares that the Senate: (1) apologizes to the victims and survivors of lynching for its failure to enact anti-lynching legislation; (2) expresses its deepest sympathies and most solemn regrets to the descendants of such victims whose ancestors were deprived of life, human dignity, and the constitutional protections accorded all other U.S. citizens; and (3) remembers the history of lynching, to ensure that these personal tragedies will be neither forgotten nor repeated.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2004
Special Olympics Sport and Empowerment Act of 2004 - Authorizes the Secretaries of Education, of State, and of Health and Human Services to award grants to, or enter into contracts or cooperative agreements with, Special Olympics for specified education, international, and health activities, including ones promoting Special Olympics and a greater understanding of contributions to society by individuals with intellectual disabilities both within and outside of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 2004
Asthmatic Schoolchildren's Treatment and Health Management Act of 2004 - Amends the Public Health Service Act (PHSA) to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in making certain PHSA grants or any other asthma-related grant to a State, to give preference to States that require public elementary and secondary schools to allow students to self-administer medication to treat that student's asthma or anaphylaxis under specified conditions. Provides that this Act does not create a cause of action or in any other way increase or diminish the liability of any person under any other law. Expresses the sense of Congress: (1) commending the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for identifying and creating strategies for addressing asthma within a coordinated school program; and (2) encouraging all schools to review these strategies and adopt policies that will best meet the needs of their student population.
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 2004
Expresses the sense of the Senate with respect to recommending expenditures for the construction of an appropriate visitor center at the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site in Arkansas to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the desegregation of Little Rock Central High School.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2004
Declares Raheela Naz Khan to be eligible for issuance of an immigrant visa or for adjustment of status to that of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence under the Immigration and Nationality Act.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2004 - Amends Federal monetary law to set forth requirements for the redesign and issuance of circulating $1 coins emblematic of each President of the United States. Prohibits inclusion of a President who has not completed his or her term of service (sitting President). Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to issue during the same period in which such $1 coins are issued commemorative coins emblematic of the spouse of each deceased former President so honored. Mandates that all Federal agencies and instrumentalities and entities that operate any business on Federal premises (including vending machines) take action to ensure that business operations they conduct that involve coins or currency shall be fully capable of accepting and dispensing $1 coins in connection with such operations. Expresses the sense of Congress about the issuance of such coins.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
States that Congress declares that the atrocities unfolding in Darfur, Sudan, are genocide. Reminds the Contracting Parties to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, particularly the Government of Sudan, of their legal obligations under the Convention. Declares that the Government of Sudan has violated such Convention. Deplores the United Nations Human Rights Commission's failure to take appropriate action with respect to the crisis in Darfur, particularly the Commission's failure to support U.S.-sponsored efforts to strongly condemn gross human rights violations committed in Darfur. Calls upon the United Nations (UN) and the UN Secretary General to assert leadership by calling the atrocities being committed in Darfur genocide. Calls on UN member states, particularly member states from the African Union, the Arab League, and the Organization of the Islamic Conference, to undertake measures to prevent the genocide in Darfur from escalating further, including the imposition of targeted sanctions against those responsible for the atrocities. Commends the Administration's leadership in seeking a peaceful resolution to the Darfur conflict and in addressing the ensuing humanitarian crisis, including the visit of Secretary of State Colin Powell to Darfur in June 2004, to engage directly in efforts to end the genocide, and the provision of nearly $140 million in bilateral humanitarian assistance through the United States Agency for International Development (AID). Commends the President for appointing former Senator John Danforth as Envoy for Peace in Sudan, and further commends the appointment of Senator Danforth as U.S. Ambassador to the UN. Calls on the Administration to: (1) continue to lead an international effort to stop genocide in Darfur; and (2) impose targeted means, including visa bans and the freezing of assets, against officials of the Government of Sudan and Janjaweed militia commanders who are responsible for the war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur. Calls on AID to establish a Darfur Resettlement, Rehabilitation, and Reconstruction Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2004
States that the Senate recognizes Israel's right of self-defense against Palestinian terrorist attacks, and supports the construction of a security fence, the route of which, with the support of the Government of Israel, takes into account the need to minimize Palestinian land confiscation and the imposition of hardships on the Palestinian people. Condemns the decision of the International Court of Justice on the legality of the security fence. Urges the United States to vote against any further United Nations action that could delay or prevent the construction of the security fence and to engage in a diplomatic campaign to persuade other countries to do the same.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 2004
Medicare Rural Home Health Services Improvement Act of 2004 - Amends the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 to provide for a two-year extension of the temporary Medicare payment increase for home health services furnished in a rural area.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 2004
States that Congress: (1) declares that the atrocities unfolding in Darfur, Sudan, are genocide; (2) reminds the President and the international community of their international legal obligations, as affirmed in the 1948 United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide; (3) commends the President's leadership in seeking a peaceful resolution to the conflict in Darfur and in addressing the humanitarian crisis caused by that conflict, including the provision of assistance in Darfur and Eastern Chad; (4) urges the President to seek a United Nations Security Council resolution that directs the member states of the United Nations to impose sanctions against those responsible for the atrocities committed in Darfur, authorizes a multinational force to guarantee humanitarian access and security for foreign aid workers and internally displaced persons, urges a halt to violence committed by militias and by the armed forces of Sudan, creates a Commission of Inquiry, and calls for the establishment of a formal peace process between Darfurians and the Government of Sudan; (5) calls on the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development to establish a Darfur Resettlement, Rehabilitation, and Reconstruction Fund; and (6) urges the President to provide political and financial support to the African Union to promote its effective intervention in Darfur.
United States · United States Congress · 8 July 2004
Calls for the President to designate the week of November 7-13, 2003, as National Veterans Awareness Week to emphasize educational programs for elementary and secondary school students regarding the contributions and sacrifices of veterans.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
Geriatric and Chronic Care Management Act of 2004 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, as amended by the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, to provide for Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) coverage of geriatric assessments and chronic care management services for eligible individuals. Directs the Secretary to study and report to Congress on: (1) the effectiveness of the different payment methodologies applicable with respect to chronic care management services developed and implemented under this Act; (2) the effectiveness of the pay for performance programs to serve Medicare beneficiaries with multiple chronic conditions, including dementia; (3) process measures and outcomes for Medicare beneficiaries with multiple chronic illnesses, including dementia; (4) the cost-effectiveness and quality associated with chronic care management under the Medicare program; and (5) the feasibility of broadening and incorporating the findings of the Assessing Care of Vulnerable Elders (ACOVE) study into the Medicare program.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
District of Columbia and United States Territories Circulating Quarter Dollar Program Act - Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to issue during 2009 redesigned quarter dollars commemorating the District of Columbia and the U.S. Territories.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
Americans Outdoors Act of 2004 - Amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) to require the transfer of qualified outer continental shelf revenues from the Treasury to specified programs. Rewrites coastal impact assistance program provisions to set forth new formulas for allocating amounts transferred for coastal impact assistance payments among producing States (coastal States within a specified distance from qualified Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas drilling leases) and among coastal political subdivisions. Amends the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (LWCFA) to: (1) establish a new formula for apportioning outdoor conservation and recreation funds to the States (including U.S. territories and the District of Columbia); (2) make Indian tribes eligible for funds under a competitive grants program established by the Secretary of the Interior; and (3) require States to allocate a percentage of their annual apportionment to localities. Requires States seeking LWCFA funds to develop State action agendas. Amends the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act to establish a new formula for apportioning Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Account funds to include apportionments to Indian tribes. Amends the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act of 1978 to: (1) include among that Act's purposes the development of new recreation areas and facilities; and (2) address the treatment of funds transferred under OCSLA.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
Requires the Architect of the Capitol to enter into a contract to revise the statue commemorating women's suffrage located in the rotunda of the United States Capitol (known as the Portrait Monument) to include a likeness of Sojourner Truth.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
Expresses: (1) condolences and deepest sympathy to the families of the young women killed in the State of Chihuahua, Mexico, since 1993, many of whom appear to be victims of one or more serial murders; and (2) the solidarity of the people of the United States with the people of Mexico in the face of these tragic and senseless acts. Recognizes the courageous struggle of the victims' families in seeking justice for them. Condemns: (1) the abductions and murders of such young women in Ciudad Juarez and the city of Chihuahua; (2) the use of torture as a means of investigation into these crimes; and (3) all senseless acts of violence in all parts of the world and violence against women in particular. Urges the President and Secretary of State to continue to express: (1) concern over these abductions and murders to the Government of Mexico and to request that the investigative and preventative efforts of such Government become part of the bilateral agenda between the Governments of Mexico and the United States; and (2) support for the efforts of the victims' families to seek justice for the victims, to express concern relating to the continued harassment of these families and the human rights defenders with which they work, and to express concern with respect to impediments in the ability of the families to receive prompt and accurate information in their cases. Supports multilateral efforts to create a DNA database that would allow families to positively identify the remains of the victims and encourages the Secretary to facilitate U.S. participation in such database. Encourages the Secretary to: (1) continue to include in the Department of State's annual Country Report on Human Rights all instances of improper investigatory methods, threats against human rights activists, and the use of torture with respect to cases involving the murder and abduction of young women in the State of Chihuahua; and (2) urge the Government of Mexico to ensure fair and proper judicial proceedings for the individuals accused of these abductions and murders and to impose appropriate punishment for those individuals subsequently determined to be guilty of such crimes. Recommends that the U.S. Ambassador to Mexico visit Ciudad Juarez and the city of Chihuahua to meet with the victims' families, women's rights organizations, and Mexican Federal and State officials responsible for investigating these crimes and preventing future such crimes.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
States that the Senate: (1) endorses the principles and practices of U.S. policy in the Middle East and ongoing actions toward realizing the vision of an Israeli and a Palestinian state living side by side in peace and security; and (2) supports efforts to continue working with others in the international community to build the capacity and will of Palestinian institutions to fight terrorism and prevent the areas from which Israel has withdrawn from posing a threat to the security of Israel.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2004
Benjamin Franklin Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue one dollar coins emblematic of the life and legacy of Benjamin Franklin (not more than 250,000 bearing his image as a young statesman and not more than 250,000 with his image as an older numismatist). Directs that all sales of coins minted under this Act include a $10 per coin surcharge, which shall be paid by the Secretary to the Franklin Institute for purposes of the celebration of the Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2004
Commends national and community organizations and health care providers for supplying information concerning the importance of screening for prostate cancer and the treatment options. Declares that the Federal Government and the States should ensure that health care providers supply patients with appropriate information and tools necessary to receive readily understandable information about all medically efficacious screening and treatments for prostate cancer.
United States · United States Congress · 17 June 2004
Recognizes as a compelling national priority the need to increase awareness about and prevent suicide. Reaffirms Congress's commitment to the priorities expressed in prior legislation (which recognized suicide as a national problem and declared suicide prevention to be a national priority). Encourages Americans, communities, and the nation to work to increase awareness about and prevent suicide.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 2004
Ronald Reagan Alzheimer's Breakthrough Act of 2004 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to make Alzheimer's disease research a priority within the National Institute on Aging. Requires the Director of the Institute to: (1) undertake an Alzheimer's Disease Prevention Initiative to accelerate the discovery of new risk and protective factors, to rapidly identify therapies and preventive interventions, and to implement effective prevention and treatment strategies; (2) conduct and support cooperative clinical research regarding Alzheimer's; and (3) conduct research concerning early detection and diagnosis, the relationship between Alzheimer's and vascular disease, and interventions designed to help caregivers. Authorizes the Director to establish a National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center to facilitate collaboration among Alzheimer's Disease Centers and Alzheimer's Disease Research Centers. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to educate the public and public health community regarding Alzheimer's disease. Authorizes the Secretary to award grants or cooperative agreements to develop coordinated respite care programs on a statewide basis. Defines "respite care" to mean planned or emergency care provided to a child or adult with a special need in order to provide temporary relief to the family caregiver of such child or adult. Directs the Secretary to award a grant or cooperative agreement to a public or private nonprofit entity to establish a National Resource Center on Lifespan Respite Care. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow: (1) a nonrefundable tax credit for each individual certified as having long-term care needs and for whom the taxpayer is acting as a caregiver; (2) a tax deduction for long-term care premiums paid under a qualified insurance contract; and (3) qualified long-term care insurance to be offered in a cafeteria plan and flexible spending arrangements.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 2004
Children's Hospitals Educational Equity and Research Act of 2004 or CHEER Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make payments through FY 2010 (currently, through FY 2005) to children's hospitals for costs associated with operating approved graduate medical resident training programs.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 2004
Iraqi Women and Children's Liberation Act of 2004 - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the United States should ensure that women and children in Iraq benefit from the liberation of Iraq; (2) women of all ethnic groups in Iraq should be included in the economic and political reconstruction of Iraq; and (3) the Government of Iraq should adhere to internationally accepted standards on human rights and rights of women and children. Authorizes the President to provide assistance for: (1) education and health care for Iraqi women and children living in Iraq or living as refugees in other countries; and (2) enhancement of political participation, economic empowerment, civil society, and personal security of women in Iraq. Expresses the sense of Congress that the President should ensure that such assistance is: (1) provided in a manner that protects and promotes the human rights of all people in Iraq, utilizing indigenous institutions and nongovernmental organizations, especially women's organizations; and (2) conditioned on the government of Iraq making continued progress toward internationally accepted standards of human rights and the rights of women.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2004
Recognizes the importance of fathers to a healthy society. Calls on all the people of the United States to observe Father's Day by considering how society can better respect and support fatherhood.
United States · United States Congress · 3 June 2004
Directs the Secretary of Defense to pay Helen L. O'Leary of South Bend, Indiana a specified amount representing the balance of the unpaid survivor benefits payable to her by reason of the death of her husband, Francis O'Leary, a former member of the Armed Forces, in September 1979.
United States · United States Congress · 21 May 2004
Guardsmen and Reservists Financial Relief Act of 2004 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exempt from the ten percent penalty on early distributions from tax-exempt retirement plans withdrawals made by military reservists or national guardsmen called to active duty for a period in excess of 179 days or for an indefinite period. Permits reimbursement of such withdrawals within two years after the end of the active duty period. Applies the provisions of this Act to individuals ordered or called to active duty after September 11, 2001, and before September 12, 2005, for retirement plan distributions made after September 11, 2001.
![Official portrait of Sen. Landrieu, Mary L. [D-LA]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/l000550_200.jpg)