Calls for the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to take a leadership role in the search for new treatment options and a cure for Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) by: (1) encouraging the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) to implement the research recommendations of the National Commission on Digestive Diseases; (2) exploring collaborative research opportunities between the NIDDK, the Office of Research on Women's Health, and other NIH Institutes and Centers; and (3) encouraging NIDDK to provide the necessary funding for continued expansion and advancement of the IBS research portfolio and for education with respect to IBS and Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders (FGIDs) through the cosponsorship of workshops and seminars with patient organizations.
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) funding should be increased for basic and clinical biomedical research into IBS and other FGIDs through NIH; (2) the Director of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should take a leadership role in ensuring that new IBS treatments are developed and appropriately monitored; and (3) the Department of Defense (DOD) and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) should bolster their efforts to study IBS and FGIDs and their association with war trauma.