Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson Issues Statement Recognizing Lupus Awareness Month

Washington, DC – (Thursday, May  1, 2014) –Today, Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson released the following statement in recognition of Lupus Awareness Month, which is nationally recognized during the month of May:

“This month, we are committed to using our collective voices to bring awareness to a disease that affects more than 1.5 million Americans -- and more than 100,000 Texans.  Lupus is infamously known as the ‘cruel mystery’ because there is no known cause and few treatments exist for this destructive disease.

I am particularly passionate about finding a cure for Lupus, because it is a disease that is more prevalent in women, especially women of color.  We must act with deliberate speed to increase funding for research aimed at improving the diagnosis and treatment of Lupus.”

Congresswoman Johnson submitted a congressional record statement in the House of Representatives officially recognizing Lupus Awareness Month.  Americans between the ages of 18-34 are more at risk for suffering from the devastating effects of Lupus, but nearly three-fourths of them have never heard of the disease. 

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U.S. Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson is the ranking member of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology and the highest-ranking Texan on the House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure. She represents the 30th Congressional District of Texas, which includes Downtown Dallas, Fair Park, Kessler Park, Old East Dallas, Pleasant Grove, South Dallas & South Oak Cliff; all of Cedar Hill, DeSoto, Duncanville, Hutchins, Lancaster & Wilmer and parts of Ferris, Glenn Heights, South Grand Prairie, Oak Lawn, Ovilla, Uptown/Victory Park and West Dallas.