Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, for over 50 years, the United States of America has asked its bravest to travel to space in service of their country. From the dynamic launch environment to the unforgiving vacuum of space, to the energetic reentry of Earth, human spaceflight places astronauts in challenging environments. Even training for spaceflight carries significant risks. I am very proud to say that I represent a great number of these astronauts who call Houston their home. As a nation, we have an obligation to those whom we put in harm's way. As a Congress, we have a responsibility to provide for the treatment of conditions caused by Federal service. As a healthcare professional myself, and as their Representative, you can say it is my duty to make sure that these folks are taken care of properly. This is why I have sponsored H.R. 6076, the TREAT Astronauts Act, a very commonsense, fiscally responsible, bipartisan bill that makes sure that our brave men and women who venture into space receive the support for medical issues associated with their service. The psychological and medical data associated with an astronaut's human spaceflight service is very important for our future space endeavors. The TREAT Astronauts Act will provide this additional data and will enable NASA to better understand the medical risks of spaceflight, minimize these risks, and enable future long-duration missions to Mars and even beyond.…”