Press Releases

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman Brad Wenstrup (OH-02) and Congressman Trent Franks (AZ-08) introduced legislation to grant lawful permanent resident status in the U.S. to Charlie Gard and his family. Text of the legislation is available, here.

"The fight for Charlie Gard’s life has caught the attention of the world. His heartbreaking condition and situation are unique, but the human rights at stake span borders and cross country lines.

A medical center in the U.S. has offered to provide Charlie with experimental treatment. Our proposed legislation grants lawful permanent status in the U.S. to Charlie Gard and his family, so they are at least enabled to pursue their best hope for Charlie. Not only does experimental treatment provide the only chance to save little Charlie’s life, it also offers the opportunity for Charlie to positively impact the chance of recovery for others suffering from this condition in the future. We believe that Charlie and his parents should have this option, should they choose to pursue it.

Ultimately, this case is about one little boy’s life and his parents’ fight to do everything in their power to save it. But it also serves as a powerful reminder that every human life has dignity, including the lives of the voiceless and most vulnerable. God forgive us all if we forget that.”

Charlie Gard was diagnosed with infantile-onset encephalomyopathic mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome, a rare genetic condition that is considered terminal. The hospital where Charlie has been receiving care, Great Ormond Street Hospital in London, determined that he should be removed from life support. Although Connie Yates and Chris Gard appealed the decision in the courts, they were ultimately overruled by the European Court of Human Rights.

According to the Washington Post, New-York Presbyterian Hospital and Columbia University Irving Medical Center has offered to admit Charlie Gard and provide him with an experimental treatment, pending emergency FDA approval. The American medical center has also offered to provide Great Ormond Street Hospital with the drug if approved. The family raised over $1.6 million to pay for their son to receive experimental treatment in the United States.

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