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| In Memory of Penny Sipes July 24, 2011 - February 13, 2013 |
My daughter Penelope Catherine Sipes was a happy, healthy, precocious and boisterous 18 month-old girl living in Glendale, CA. She loved Mickey Mouse, food, family dance parties,
giving wet slobbery kisses and most of all she loved her big sister Lucy. Penny passed
away silently in her sleep in the early morning hours of February 13, 2013. Penny's
death was sudden, unexpected, unexplained and without any known methods of
prevention.
On October 8th 2013 Rachael, Lucy and I traveled to Washington DC to lobby the Congress and Senate about the Sudden Unexpected Death Data Enhancement and Awareness Act (S.314/H.R.669) which was introduced with bipartisan support. This Act would fund research and standardize autopsies for for stillbirths, SIDS and SUDC. Right now the way autopsies are performed and data from autopsies are collected in these types of deaths vary from county to county. (Except in the case of SIDS, which is defined as a child 0-12 months.) This would extend the age range of the standardized autopsies and data collection to include stillbirths up to 4 years-old. Penny was 18 months-old and considered SUDC. "Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood".
Well, we have some great news! I have been informed that HR669 will be included in a hearing next week of the House Subcommittee on Health!
On October 8th 2013 Rachael, Lucy and I traveled to Washington DC to lobby the Congress and Senate about the Sudden Unexpected Death Data Enhancement and Awareness Act (S.314/H.R.669) which was introduced with bipartisan support. This Act would fund research and standardize autopsies for for stillbirths, SIDS and SUDC. Right now the way autopsies are performed and data from autopsies are collected in these types of deaths vary from county to county. (Except in the case of SIDS, which is defined as a child 0-12 months.) This would extend the age range of the standardized autopsies and data collection to include stillbirths up to 4 years-old. Penny was 18 months-old and considered SUDC. "Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood".
Well, we have some great news! I have been informed that HR669 will be included in a hearing next week of the House Subcommittee on Health!
Details: November 13, 2013
Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health
HEARING NOTICE
The Subcommittee on Health will hold a hearing on Wednesday, November 20, 2013, at 2:00 p.m. in 2123 Rayburn House Office Building. The hearing is entitled “Examining Public Health Legislation to Help Local Communities.” Witnesses will be announced and are by invitation only. The hearing webcast will be available at http://energycommerce.house.gov/.
To boil it down, this hearing will decide if The Congressional Subcommittee on Health think it's worthwhile to fund research that will help find the cause for Stillbirths, SIDS and SUDC. And once we find the cause we can find a way to prevent it form happening to any more babies.
It has taken more than 4 years for this Act to get to this point, so it is reason to celebrate!!!!! But it's also a reason to quickly move into action!
HERE 3 WAYS YOU CAN HELP:
#1- If you live or work in any of the states that the following Congressional members represent (listed on bottom of this email)- PLEASE- call their DC office before Nov 20 and ask for their support of HR669 at the hearing on November 20th and in any negotiations that follow. If you have family/friends in their district- please ask them to call. I've added links to all the Congressmen's websites and phone numbers to their Washington DC office. So check their website to see if you live in their district then give them a call and say "As a constituent I would like to ask that the Congressman please support HR669 The Sudden Unexpected Death Data Enhancement and Awareness Act."
#2 - Follow this link and send a letter to your Congressman and Senators in support of this act. It's easy and it literally takes 1 minute. Please, at the very least, do this right now.
https://www.votervoice.net/SIDS/Campaigns/26685/Respond
#3 - Please spread the word! Send the link to this blog post to everyone you know. Email, Facebook, Twitter, anything and everything you can do to spread the word will help.
Thanks so much!
Andy Sipes (Penny's Dad)
Vice Chairman: Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (TX)(202) 225-2919
Ed Whitfield (KY) (202) 225-3115
John Shimkus (IL) (202) 225-5271
Mike Rogers (MI) (202) 225-4872
Tim Murphy (PA) (202) 225-2301
Marsha Blackburn (TN) (202) 225-2811
Phil Gingrey (GA) (202) 225-2931
Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA)(202) 225-2006
Leonard Lance (NJ) (202) 225-5361
Bill Cassidy (LA) (202) 225-3901
Brett Guthrie (KY) (202) 225-3501
Morgan Griffith (VA) (202) 225-3861
Gus Bilirakis (FL) (202) 225-5755
Renee Ellmers (NC) (202) 225-4531
Joe Barton (TX) (202) 225-2002
Fred Upton (MI) (202) 225-3761
John D. Dingell (MI) (202) 225-4071
Eliot L. Engel (NY) (202) 225-2464
Lois Capps (CA) (202) 225-3601
Jan Schakowsky (IL) (202) 225-2111
Jim Matheson (UT) (202) 225-3011
Gene Green (TX) (202) 225-1688
G.K. Butterfield (NC) (202) 225-3101
John Barrow (GA) (202) 225-2823
Donna M. Christensen (VI) (202) 225-1790
Kathy Castor (FL) (202) 225-3376
John Sarbanes (MD) (202) 225-4016
Henry A. Waxman (CA) (202) 225-3976
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