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HR 3938 105th Congress House Health Critically ill Drug approvals Drug utilization Drugs Government Operations and Politics Government paperwork Government publicity Informed consent (Medical law) Medical personnel Medical supplies Terminal care

Terminally Ill Access to Treatment Act of 1998

Introduced: May 21, 1998 See on congress.gov
This bill died when the 105th Congress ended
It never became law before the 105th Congress (1997–1998) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 3 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Jun 5, 1998
Referred to the Subcommittee on Health and Environment.
May 21, 1998
Referred to the House Committee on Commerce.
May 21, 1998
Introduced in House
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 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Terminally Ill Access to Treatment Act of 1998 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to approve for treating the terminally ill drugs and devices that have not received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) final approval and have not been shown to be unsafe. Declares that it is not illegal for a health care practitioner to administer a drug or device approved under this Act if the practitioner has notified the patient that the drug or device is experimental and not FDA-approved, and has received written approval from the patient or the patient's representative.

Requires: (1) a practitioner to stop treatment and report to the Secretary if a drug or device causes acute harm; and (2) the Secretary to give public notice of an approved drug's or device's benefits or harm.

What's happening now June 5, 1998

Referred to the Subcommittee on Health and Environment.

 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 3938: Terminally Ill Access to Treatment Act of 1998. 105th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/105-HR-3938/
MLA
"H.R. 3938: Terminally Ill Access to Treatment Act of 1998." 105th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/105-HR-3938/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 3938, 105th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/105-HR-3938/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 3938: Terminally Ill Access to Treatment Act of 1998](https://openamerica.io/bill/105-HR-3938/)
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