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HR 5979 110th Congress House

Stillbirth Awareness and Research Act of 2008

Official title: To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for the national collection of data on stillbirths in a standardized manner, and for other purposes.

Introduced: September 8, 2008 See on congress.gov
Health Administrative procedureChildbirthDeathDepartment of Health and Human Services
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DirectoriesEconomics and Public FinanceFederal aid to researchFetusGovernment Operations and PoliticsGovernment paperworkGovernment publicityHealth educationHealth information systemsLawMedical recordsMedical researchScience, Technology, CommunicationsState lawsWomenWomen's health
This bill died when the 110th Congress ended
It never became law before the 110th Congress (2007–2008) 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
May 7, 2008
Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
May 6, 2008
Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
May 6, 2008
Introduced in House
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 Latest action May 7, 2008

Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Stillbirth Awareness and Research Act of 2008 - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) more states should enact legislation that allows the issuance of a Certificate of Birth Resulting in Stillbirth; and (2) the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) should increase the allocation of funds and other resources for stillbirth research.

Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to establish and maintain a scientific registry of stillbirths in the United States, which shall include for each stillbirth information on the stillborn fetus and the mother's health and pregnancy as collected and submitted by states on the U.S. Standard Report of Fetal Death.

Requires the Secretary to: (1) provide for the development of a standard definition of stillbirth and a standard protocol for stillbirth data collection and surveillance; and (2) carry out a national campaign to increase public and state awareness of such definition and protocol and public awareness and knowledge of stillbirths.

 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. 5979: Stillbirth Awareness and Research Act of 2008. 110th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/110-HR-5979/
MLA
"H.R. 5979: Stillbirth Awareness and Research Act of 2008." 110th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/110-HR-5979/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 5979, 110th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/110-HR-5979/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 5979: Stillbirth Awareness and Research Act of 2008](https://openamerica.io/bill/110-HR-5979/)
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