WHEREAS, Since 1987, when Congress authorized the establishment of a national registry of volunteer bone marrow donors, the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) has facilitated more than 40,000 marrow and cord blood transplants; and

WHEREAS, The NMDP states that the number of transplants facilitated through the national registry is “only a fraction of the people who can benefit”; and

WHEREAS, One of the leading hurdles cited in a report by the Government Accountability Office is locating a suitably matched, unrelated donor; a process that is often difficult, time-consuming, and costly; and

WHEREAS, Patients will deteriorate, develop major complications, or die while awaiting potential donors; and

WHEREAS, The most prevalent problem with respect to bone marrow donation is the continued disparity in the number of racially and ethnically diverse donors. Of the more than eight million potential donors on the registry, only 26 percent are donors from racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds; and

WHEREAS, There is a need to enhance the understanding of the importance of bone marrow donation, and to encourage Californians to participate in bone marrow donation drives; and

WHEREAS, The NMDP operates the Be The Match Registry, the world’s largest and most diverse registry of potential bone marrow donors; and

WHEREAS, There is a need to support programs that reduce search time for patients and fully type donors whose tissue compatibility types are less common; and

WHEREAS, The bone marrow registration process is simple. It only takes a few minutes and requires a cheek swab; now, therefore, be it