FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

        CONTACT

October 1, 2004

                         Benjamin J. Kirby



                                  202-842-4101 x103




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PARKINSON’S COMMUNITY APPLAUDS ENACTMENT OF CALIFORNIA
PARKINSON’S DISEASE REGISTRY

GOVERNOR SCHWARZENEGGER SIGNS ASSEMBLY BILL 2248 INTO
LAW



(Washington, DC) – The Parkinson’s community today
hailed the signing of California Assembly Bill 2248 by
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, sponsored by
Assemblyman Dario Frommer (D – District 43), as a
victory for the entire Parkinson’s community, and for
continued advocacy efforts for Parkinson’s disease
funding and research.



“The Parkinson’s community – and the many millions of
Americans, not just those in California – who will
benefit from this important law, sincerely thank
Governor Schwarzenegger for his extraordinary
leadership,” said Amy Comstock, PAN Executive
Director.



The California Parkinson’s Disease Registry is a
first-of-its-kind system that will assess the number
of people in a specified area with Parkinson’s
disease.  A.B. 2248 will require the California
Department of Health Services (DHS) to create a
Parkinson’s disease-specific registry and “conduct a
program of epidemiological assessments on the
incidence of the disease.”  The law also encourages
DHS to convene a unique task force comprised of
scientists and Parkinson’s disease researchers as well
as Parkinson’s advocates to provide support and advice
for the implementation and funding of the California
Parkinson’s Disease Registry.



“We don’t have enough data on how many people have
Parkinson’s disease in America today,” said Comstock.
“We don’t have enough data on the general age,
ethnicity, or gender of people with Parkinson’s
disease, or even if environmental factors play a part
in causing Parkinson’s disease.  The California
Registry will provide solid data for researchers who
are seeking answers to those important questions.”



“For years Parkinson’s research has been slowed by a
lack of fundamental data about the occurrence of this
disease throughout the general population.  This new
law is a necessary first step to collect that data and
will almost certainly accelerate research and
understanding of this devastating disease,” said J.
William Langston, founder of the Parkinson’s Institute
in Sunnyvale, California, and Chief Scientific Advisor
to The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s
Research.



Dr. Caroline Tanner, a world-renowned epidemiologist
with the Parkinson’s Institute, said “California has
been closely tracking the use of toxic chemicals for
the past 20 years.  The use of this data in
conjunction with data from the Registry presents a
unique opportunity to determine the relationship
between exposure to certain toxins and the development
of Parkinson’s.”



 “We are deeply grateful to the many people in the
Parkinson’s community who contacted the Governor’s
office in support of this legislation,” said Mark
Siegel, PAN Coordinator for Southern California and
President of the Los Angeles Chapter of the American
Parkinson’s Disease Association. “Of the over 800
bills sitting on the governor’s desk for approval or
veto, the Registry Bill was one of the two most
actively supported by contact with the Governor’s
office by citizens both in and outside of California.”



Greg and Ann Wasson, longtime PAN advocates and
Co-State Coordinators for PAN in Northern California,
praised the grassroots in making a crucial difference
in the fate of this bill. “The letters, faxes, emails
and calls by the grassroots made this bill stand out
among the hundreds of others on the Governor’s desk,
and made it impossible to ignore.”



Said PAN President Joan Samuelson: “This is a first in
the Parkinson’s community, not just in California, but
across America.  We hope that other states – and even
the United States Congress – will follow the
leadership of the California Legislature to create
similar registries for Parkinson’s disease.  Thanks to
the visionary leadership of Assemblyman Frommer and
State Senator Deborah Ortiz and the efforts of the
Parkinson’s community in California, this bill was
passed and signed in record time.”



Founded in 1991, PAN is the unified education and
advocacy voice of the Parkinson’s community—over one
million Americans and their families.  Through
education and interaction with the Parkinson’s
community, scientists, lawmakers, opinion leaders, and
the public, PAN fights for a cure by increasing
awareness about Parkinson’s disease and seeks
increased federal support for Parkinson’s research.
For more information on the Parkinson’s Action
Network, please visit www.parkinsonsaction.org or call
1-800-850-4726.







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