2005, George Herbert walker bush, senator reid made the same argument when george w. Bush was president of United States. Her to, 18 month before be bush left office, senator that there should be a presumption against confirmation. It is only fair to play by the same set of rules. Based on the conduct, based on the behavior of our colleagues when they were in the majority come up first when he filibustered judges for the first time, and later when they were in the majority before they saw the majority slip to republicans, the democratic leader packed the d. C. Court of appeals by a vote from the nuclear option, breaking the senate rules any raw display a political power in order to pack a court that many people called the secondmost Important Court in the land. For this lifetime appointment to the court is a critical check on the executive branch. A check that this administration has proved over and over again, we need desperately. And i have pointed out , this nomination will change the ideological balance of the Supreme Court for generations. Justice scalia search for 30 years. Because of that, because of all of this, i believe the American People should have their voices heard in the selection of the next Supreme Court nominee. We have already undertaken a process here of the democrats choosing the nominee for president. Republicans are doing the same. They are simply too much at stake to leave this decision in the hands of a president , who is headed out the door. A decision that will have dramatic consequences on the balance of the court and the direction of the country for generations to come. I believe we should listen to the voices of the American People and allow them to cast their vote and to raise their will in determining who make that selection. Let me conclude i know there have been some members of the press that asked, well, if not now, how about in a lame duck session of congress . I think that is a terrible idea. If you believe in the principle that the American Peoples voice should be heard, that makes no sense to have an election and do it and not honor their selection. So, i know some have expressed some concern about that. But, i for one, believe we ought to be consistent and that consistent position is the American People deserve to be heard and their voice heard. Madam president , i yield the floor. Cspan3 to the white house continues today when former president bill clinton speaks at a Campaign Rally in tucson, arizona. At theheduled to appear event, former arizona representative Debbie Giffords and her husband former astronaut captain martelli. Ive coverage begins at 5 30 eastern here on cspan. 5 30ve coverage begins at eastern on cspan. A the House Committee held roundtable discussion on concussion and treatment. The link between Football Industries and degenerative brain disease. The first time an nfl public official good afternoon. I want to welcome all of our panelists here. This is a forum, not a hearing. We will have other hearings on this discussion of concussions. Are is a time when members usually not here but just arriving. We will have members arriving throughout this forum. Hence the different approach. In thewill be sitting panel raising the right hand and swearing to tell the whole truth. You are scientists, we assume that you would you will say anyways. Joined here by my colleagues, the Ranking Member representative alone. Dr. Mike burgess of texas. We wondered his members as they come. Let me start off here with a little opening statement. I want to thank your for being here for todays roundtable called evaluating state Concussion Research and invocation of Public Health. We are here because a lot of people are paying attention to the issue. There is a new and provocative movie that some of you may of seen called concussion that is getting a lot of attention. This is bringing it to the public eye. We have mounting evidence regarding the prevalence of concussions in sports and military. We know that most of the concussions dont even can occur in sports and military. From parents and patients to athletes and servicemembers, people are worried. They hear more about the dangers and potential longterm effect. They want to know if they and their Family Members are at risk. That has not only been the case. Less than two decades ago, concussions were barely a blip on the radar screen. They said you just got to rebel wrong, saw stars or no big deal. I remember plane football years ago you got not been on the field. They weighed some ammonia in front of you and you got up and finished. We have come along way from the wave it off and tough it out attitude. The public is concerned and looking for answers. Where do you draw the line between a booboo and going to the er . When is it safe to play Contact Sports . Is my memory loss due to six years of high school and College Football or Something Else . Are my mood swings result of posttraumatic stress from a couple of chores or they somehow tied to training or the car accident that took place 10 years ago . Its a good thing we are asking these questions. As we sit here today, we do not yet have the answers. There lays the challenge. The public wants answers, but the science is not ready to provide. So we deal with the challenges of misapprehension and the fear of what we dont understand. The need to get greater clarity on the science of concussions is of utmost point importance. To death. S contribute however, it is important to know that concussions are not only limited to the athletic field. Nearly 40 of all documented traumatic brain injury were to Motor Vehicle accidents. Those 6i5 and older had highest rate of tbi related deaths. Which brings us to our task today. Chapter ingin a new the National Dialogue on concussions. We are not here to cast blame or point fingers. We are here to take a step back to gain perspective and begin a conversation on solutions. Are joined today by some of the most prominent experts in the field. This is a wonderful opportunity for members to sit back and listen from the to these individuals. They are here to help educate members and the public about the science of concussions. Know, what are the gaps, how do we address those gaps to achieve meaningful short and longterm solutions. We are here today to make one thing clear, this is not a sports or military issue only. This is a Public Health issue. Millions of americans not playing sports or in the military suffer concussions. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. Some will recover with no noticeable effect. Others will have debilitating symptoms. Why the difference . Why the disparity . Thats what we want to know. We will begin with a brief presentation from dr. Boulder from the center of disease control. Wholl provide a brief introduction to concussions in a general overview about these injuries and their prevalence to society. Then put forward a series of broad discussion questions tour participants. The questions focus on these four themes. Prominent misconceptions or underappreciated fact. Knowledge gaps in our understanding of concussions. That willbjectives lead to meaningful progress to minimizing the risk of concussions. Obstacles to achieving those objectives, including coordination with the research community. Tose questions are intended guide the conversation among participants and provide us as members the opportunity to listen and learn from the community. Obviously members are welcome to ask questions and join the discussion. It will not be formal like a hearing, but just let us know if you have a question and we will keep track of that. Assuming their time at the end, he will have more questions to ask the panelists. I would now like to thank Ranking Member to get for her support. Thank you so much. Looking forward, i recognize you. Thank you for this roundtable. Sometimes it seems like the format is a little bit unwieldy, but as chairman up to and will tell you, we did a lot of these when we worked on our 21st century initiative. It was a good way to get a lot of information packed into one afternoon. I also want to thank the panel of experts of come today to talk to us about this importance of concussion and head trauma. Understanding the effect and impacts of impacts to the head and how to prevent, diagnose, and treat injuries that come from such problems. To sports leagues, to parents of Young Athletes all around the country. Given the quality of the panelists today and the diversity of opinion, i believe we have the opportunity for a lively discussion. I hope todays event has been communicated to us the staff level is the beginning of a series of discussions and hearings on this topic. Structuredgeted in and structured discussion on this matter will be useful as we think about what congresss role is. As we move forward, the hearing process will provide us with organizational tools and structure. I dont think the most important thing is that people be under oath, i think it does help to have testimony on the record. 10 years ago, not much attention was paid to concussions as you said. As we learn more and more about the potential short and longterm effect of concussive and sub concussive hits, our constituents have many questions and can turn concerns, particularly about their childrens involvement in Contact Sports. Young athletes may be particularly at risk of lasting brain damage due to repetitive hits, even when those hits dont rise to the level of a concussion. Studies have shown that Young Athletes who do not sustain concussions but did experience repetitive hits to the head over aneurological single flex season. Additionally, according to a recently released study by the mayo clinic in december of last year, about one third of men who played amateur Contact Sports in their youth displayed evidence of cte pathology. That number surprised me and is deeply concerning. It shows that you dont have to have played the National Football or hockey to suffer longterm brain damage from Contact Sports. While we still have not established a prevalence he first cte, the study strongly suggest the disease is more prevalent than we originally thought. And frankly not just with those girlses, but also with soccer and other diseases affecting both girls and boys. I understand that any such scientific in any such scientific endeavor, there may be disagreement and uncertainty about what policy actions we should take against the backdrop of that knowledge. But uncertainty does not excuse in action. Im am interested to hear from our panel today about what actions we should take right now and then how we need to move forward in our continuing investigation. Im going to say as the congresswoman for the World Champion denver broncos, you know i had to say it. And somebody whose family has been lifelong seasonticket owners. And also somebody who graduated from a Division Hockey one school and now represents one, the university of denver, who loved playing and watching Contact Sports. We appreciate the fitness and other benefits of the activity. At the same time, the head injuries associated with some of these activities appear to have caused a close is that her, irreversible and even deadly. Therefore, if there are ways to make these activities safer not just for our kids, but also for professional athletes, we need to make sure that are being implement it. In other words mr. Chairman, we want it all. We want to enjoy the thrill of being a fan or participant but with the confidence that has much is being possible to inform players of the health risks and to minimize the risks that are associated with Contact Sports. Thank you for recognizing me. I know we have a lot to discuss and many voices to hear from. I am glad we are kicking off this effort. I yield back. I noticed the kickoff line has been moved back. Of theton, the Chairman Committee recognizes. Either long statement but i wont read it. I want to get to the business of the day. I appreciate everyone being here. I think we have a lot more to learn. Primarily this is why the format is a little bit different. As i understand it, my friend mr. Pallone has a letter for me. Working in ad to continuous space and this is not the first step. I know that we are all truly very interested in this and i intend to make sure that this happens. Iwant to quickly say that worked with my Promise Center in michigan at bronson hospital. One of the quotes we took down identified asve simple concussions are not quite as simple as they seem to be. That underscores what we are facing. I yield back. Thank you, i just want to thank all of our participants for joining us today. Concussions are critical Public Health issues affecting millions of people each year and we are strong indications that the effects of repeated brain trauma, even those received during one day could accumulate with consequences that are developed debilitating. These consequent is could stem from injuries once considered as sub concussive hits. Recent study showed that athletes exhibit evidence of significant brain damage due to hits to the head even when they dont suffer concussions. The work of a group of researchers out of Purdue University found significant structural changes to the brains of High School Football players, even among those who do not have concussion diagnosis. It was particularly what was particularly troubling is that these would show up months later, showing lasting damage. Decrease brain function, Behavioral Changes in the release of biochemical markers leak to brain damage. Researchers have repeatedly found evidence the linkage between head damage and the disease notice cte. It is a devastating disease with memory loss, dementia and depression. I am honored to welcome dr. And mckee from boston university. Her and her colleagues have been undergoing groundbreaking research in defining cte. Theyd examine the brain tissue of dozens of deceased former nfl players as well as individuals playing football at the collegiate and high school level. They have discovered the presence of cte and former as young as 25 and in many adults are played football since they were kids. Theyve confirmed that it is a unique disease with a unique signature and their work is commentated in a broad Scientific Consensus to define the character six of cte. Its unfortunate that her work has been questioned by those interested in maintaining the status quo. Some of our Great National pastimes, the sports we love and our Children Play every day may cause significant and lasting brain damage. Theit is time to check mounting evidence there is a linkage between head impacts and brain damage and it is time to do something about it. While there is research that still needs to be done to answer all the questions, or should not be an excuse for inaction. We should not only be examining the state of it, but how we can apply right now to protect our servicemen and women, are athletes and children. Today is onus finding a path forward. I hope our discussion will not serve to close confusion or two up skewer the Scientific Consensus two up skewer the Scientific Consensus. Miss mckale is not only the director family relations of the Concussion Legacy Foundation which does critical work in advancing the science of concussions and cte. She is the wife of former tampa bay buccaneer tom mckale who has cte. Especially proud to hear about lisas experience with cte. And the path forward to address the disease. Let me say chairman upton, let me conclude my remarks by suggesting respectfully and you mentioned it already that while this roundtable is a viable start to the work, we should see it as that, a start. We need to hold hearings on the suspect s subject. Given the number of lives it affects. That im sending you a letter before ivan mentioned it. I even mentioned it. I mentioned in a letter of proposal for a series of four Committee Hearings that would give concussions and sport related head trauma the attention they deserve as critical Public Health issues and the hope we can Work Together moving forward to find a way to plan future hearings. Thank you again to all of our participants and a want to thank chairman upton chairman murphy and my colleague, Ranking Member to death for putting this together. I think we can Work Together to find the best way to do the significant Public Health issue. I want to mention some of the members were here. ,ou met fred upton of michigan joe pitts of pennsylvania who is the chairman of the health subcommittee. Michael burgess is also on the subcommittee of manufacturing. Richard hudson of North Carolina , paul tonko of new york. Dr. Larry bush on. Pallone. Rank now let me try and i wont read your full bios could be here for a long time and its clear what i said before, some it is deputy decades of experience. These are not going to be in any particular orde