January 31, 2025

The Honorable John Thune   
Chairman
Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions  
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510                    

The Honorable Chuck Schumer
Senate Majority Leader
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510

The Honorable Mike Johnson    
Speaker of the House 
United States House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20510          

The Honorable Hakeem Jeffries
House Minority Leader
United States House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20510  

Subject: Request to Congress to pass the Give Kids a Chance Act

Speaker Johnson, Leaders Schumer, Jeffries, and McConnell:

On behalf of the pediatric cancer community of families of children facing cancer, advocacy groups dedicated to supporting families and researcher, physicians and scientists, and companies developing drugs for seriously ill children, we urge you to pass the pediatric cancer bills in the March 2025funding bill. 

A vote for the Give Kids a Chance Act is a vote for children with cancer.

Title I, Section 101 of the Give Kids a Chance Act, also named the Give Kids a Chance Act provides for pediatric studies of combinations of novel cancer drugs. To find new cures for children, scientists must be able to design protocols with combinations of cancer drugs.

The Creating Hope Reauthorization Act, also included in the Give Kids a Chance Act, reauthorizes the rare pediatric priority review voucher program that has brought more than 65 new drugs to market for children with cancer and other life threatening illnesses.

The Innovation in Pediatric Drugs Act, also included in the Give Kids a Chance Act, provides for penalties when companies do not complete their required pediatric studies.

The Accelerating Kids Access to Care Act facilitates out-of-state care for medically complex children on Medicaid or CHIP. How can it be that kids on Medicaid might not receive critical cell and gene therapies that are only provided in another state?

Thank you for your support of children with cancer. The community of families, friends, scientists and advocates stand ready to work with you to secure passage of this critical bill.

Sincerely,