mr. speaker , i rise today to voice my support for the stem cell therapeutics and research act of 2005 . 
as many of my colleagues have discussed , this bill provides federal support to help cord blood banks collect and maintain new cord blood units . 
it 's important to acknowledge that this bill also reaffirms congress 's commitment to the national bone marrow donor registry . 
established in 1986 , the national registry has facilitated more than 21 , 000 lifesaving transplants involving cord blood , peripheral blood , and bone marrow . 
although we are discussing cord blood for the first time today , the national marrow donor program ( nmdp ) , which has operated the national registry since its inception , has already incorporated cord blood into the registry to help patients , especially minority patients whose genetic diversity often makes it difficult to find a suitably matched adult volunteer donor . 
through the nmdp today , individuals in need of a cord blood transplant already have access to the largest listing of cord blood units in the united states -- more than 42 , 000 units . 
in addition , the nmdp lists more than 9 million i am particularly proud of the work of the nmdp , especially its strong support for cord blood and because of its partnership with the st . 
louis cord blood bank . 
the st . 
louis cord blood bank is the cornerstone of an active clinical stem cell transplantation and research program at cardinal glennon children 's hospital and st . 
louis university . 
along with the st . 
louis cord blood bank , the nmdp partners with 14 of the 20 u.s. public cord blood banks . 
another 3 are in the process of becoming partners . 
together , the nmdp and these cord blood banks are working to increase the national inventory of cord blood available for transplants and research . 
their work helps thousands of americans with life-threatening diseases , such as sickle cell anemia . 
it is essential that the existing integrated program continue to be able to operate as it does today . 
physicians and patients must be able to search for and obtain support from a single national registry that includes cord blood , peripheral blood , and bone marrow . 
physicians should not have to waste time searching multiple cord blood banks and adult donor registries or having to coordinate the further testing and delivery of units . 
searching is not the only function that must be integrated . 
physicians need to be confident that the results of their searches allow them to truly compare cord blood units and adult donor information . 
thus , the cord blood community should work with the national program to establish criteria and standards to ensure consistency of the information that is part of the registry . 
finally , it is important that all patients , not just those who receive a bone marrow or peripheral blood stem cell transplants , receive the patient advocacy and educational services that the nmdp provides to all the patients it assists . 
the nmdp already provides physicians and their patients with this type of support . 
this bill is a step in the right direction because it builds upon the existing registry . 
we must be careful not to waste scarce federal dollars by duplicating what is already working well . 
therefore , i urge my colleagues to vote in favor of h.r. 2520 , which provides for an integrated national program . 
