Children’s Physician Presents on Sickle Cell Disease at Congressional Briefing
Late this June, Peter Lane, M.D., Director of Children’s Sickle Cell Disease Program, spoke at a congressional briefing in Washington, D.C., on what life is like for a child with sickle cell disease. The event, attended by staff from 11 Georgia congressional offices and Sickle Cell Caucus co-chairs, Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) and Reps. Danny Davis (D-IL) and Charles Rangel (D-NY), also allowed Dr. Lane to highlight Children’s work serving the largest pediatric sickle cell patient population in the country and discuss exciting advances in research and care.
Children’s Government Affairs is working with federal legislators to raise awareness about sickle cell disease and educate lawmakers on the impact the disease has in Georgia and across the United States. The briefing, organized by the Congressional Sickle Cell Caucus, Children’s and several other pediatric hospitals, marked the caucus’s first action in recent years. It drew a large crowd of attendees from many different Congressional offices and also featured NFL wide receiver and Super Bowl 43 MVP Santonio Holmes, who shared that he and his son both have sickle cell disease.
Thanks in part to the recent efforts by Children’s to promote sickle cell disease awareness, challenges and research possibilities, two additional Georgia Congressmen—Reps. Rick Allen and David Scott—plan to join the Sickle Cell Caucus. Government Affairs hopes to build on this momentum and organize additional outreach events both in Washington, D.C., and in Georgia later this year.