RELEASE: During Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, Gottheimer Announces New Bipartisan Legislation To Fight Pediatric Cancer

Resources / Press Share on RELEASE: During Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, Gottheimer Announces New Bipartisan Legislation To Fight Pediatric Cancer Ensures Pediatric Cancer Experts Involved in State Cancer Plans; Named After Jersey Native, Kylie Kupperman, Who Passed Away from Cancer at Just 19 Sep 22, 2026 Press Above: Gottheimer announces “Kylie’s Law” at Memorial Sloan Kettering Bergen. MONTVALE, NJ — Today, Tuesday, September 22, 2026, during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, at Memorial Sloan Kettering Bergen in Montvale, Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5) announced the introduction of the bipartisan Kylie’s Voices for Childhood Cancer Act , or “Kylie’s Law,” with his colleague Congressman Mike Lawler (NY-17). Named in honor of a close family friend of Gottheimer, Kylie Kupperman, the bill would require states to include at least two pediatric cancer experts on the coalitions that write state cancer control plans, ensuring children’s needs aren’t overlooked in blueprints built largely around adult cancer. Kylie was born in Englewood, New Jersey, and grew up in Chappaqua, New York. Just weeks before her fourth birthday, she was diagnosed with medulloblastoma, a rare and fast-growing pediatric brain tumor. After undergoing months of surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation, she was declared cancer-free. Just as she was starting her freshman year at the University of Delaware, her cancer returned. She tragically passed away on September 10, 2025, at age 19. Every state has a Comprehensive Cancer Control Coalition that shapes its long-term cancer plan, but only about a third of states build specific childhood cancer goals into those plans. New Jersey ranks third in the nation for pediatric cancer incidence, with roughly 440 children and teens diagnosed every year and nearly 1,900 cases across Bergen, Passaic, and Sussex Counties over one recent 25-year stretch. Watch Gottheimer’s remarks here . “Kylie should be starting her junior year of college right now — and wow, you should have heard how her friends gushed about her — and how her brother and sister who played games and music for her — and carried her up the stairs when she was too weak.” said Congressman Gottheimer (NJ-5). “But, instead of being at the University of Delaware, her parents are here today, along with friends from Jersey, Chappaqua, and beyond, to honor and celebrate her memory, and to continue fighting Kylie-style, so that no other family has to go through what they went through.” Kylie’s Law will: Require Pediatric Representation on State Cancer Coalitions. States receiving federal funding for their comprehensive cancer control plan would be required to include at least two pediatric cancer experts on their coalitions. Establish a National Pediatric Cancer Advisory Committee. Directs the Department of Health and Human Services to establish a new Cancer Control Plan Pediatric Cancer Advisory Committee, bringing together representatives from the National Cancer Institute (NCI), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)’s National Comprehensive Cancer Control Program, Title V and Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)-funded state programs, and pediatric cancer survivors and caregivers. The committee would develop best practices for addressing pediatric cancer, survivorship, and adolescent and young adult (AYA) care in state cancer plans. Expand the Maternal and Child Health Services Block Grant Program. Amends the Maternal and Child Health Services Block Grant Program to include pediatric cancer as an explicit purpose of the program, allowing states to use existing federal dollars to support children with cancer and their families. Gottheimer’s additional actions: Work with Trenton to Act at the State Level. Gottheimer is partnering with Senator Joe Lagana, Assemblywoman Lisa Swain, and Assemblyman Chris Tully, who are introducing State legislation here in New Jersey to codify the requirement that pediatric cancer representatives sit on our state’s cancer control coalition. This ensures no future administration can remove pediatric cancer experts from their cancer coalitions. Designate November 13 as “Kylie’s Day.” Gottheimer will introduce a House resolution on November 13, 2026, which would have been Kylie’s 21st birthday, to formally honor her life, her fight, her love of pink, and her legacy. “When a child is diagnosed with cancer, the last thing their family should have to worry about is whether they can afford the care or find the treatment their child needs. We must keep working together and investing in lifesaving research and care so that every child has the chance to grow up, follow their dreams, and live a long, healthy life,” said Congressman Mike Lawler (NY-17). “As the father of a childhood cancer survivor, I know the toll this awful disease has on our families. Our community deserves to be heard, and I am thankful to Reps. Gottheimer and Lawler for their steadf