Shaheen, Collins Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Help Clinicians Provide Care for Patients Exposed to PFAS
(Washington, DC) – U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Susan Collins (R-ME) are introducing new, bipartisan legislation to better protect the health of Granite Staters, and all Americans, who have been exposed to toxic per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The Better Care for PFAS Patients Act would ensure the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Research (ATSDR) regularly assesses and updates clinical guidance regarding the health effects from exposure to PFAS. Earlier this year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and ATSDR provided clinicians with the first updated guidance since 2019. U.S. Representatives Dan Kildee (MI-08) and Mike Lawler (NY-17) introduced a companion bill in the U.S. House of Representatives.
“As we continue to learn about the health impacts caused by PFAS exposure, it’s critical that health care providers have the most up-to-date guidance so they can best care for their patients,” said Senator Shaheen. “Working to address PFAS contamination in the Granite State, and across the country, continues to be a top priority, which is why I’m proud to introduce this bipartisan legislation that takes an important step toward keeping Americans healthy by requiring regular updates to clinician guidance.”
“PFAS and other harmful contaminants have been discovered in private water systems in Maine and across the country, and contamination will only become more evident as testing becomes more readily available,” said Senator Collins. “This bipartisan legislation would require the CDC to continuously update clinical guidance on the health effects of PFAS, helping to ensure that medical professionals and citizens have access to the latest information on these substances.”
Specifically, the Better Care for PFAS Patients Act would:
- Require the ATSDR to enter into an agreement with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) to assess the health effects of PFAS and formulate clinical recommendations within two years of enactment;
- Direct NASEM to update its assessment of PFAS health effects and clinical guidance every five years or more frequently as determined by ATSDR; and
- Ensure ATSDR issues its own clinical guidance on addressing the health effects of PFAS within five years of enactment and update that guidance every five years or more frequently as determined by ATSDR.
The legislation has been endorsed by the Environmental Working Group, International Association of Fire Fighters, Southern Environmental Law Center, Merrimack Citizens for Clean Water, Testing for Pease and the National PFAS Contamination Coalition.
Shaheen leads efforts in the Senate to uncover the health effects related to PFAS contamination and has long worked to get clinicians guidance on testing and protocols based on recommendations made by NASEM in a 2022 report. Shaheen also introduced bipartisan legislation in 2020, the Physician Education for PFAS Health Impacts Act, to establish a grant program within the Department of Health and Human Services to fund the creation of training materials for physicians on the health effects of PFAS and best practices for caring for patients who have been exposed to PFAS. Key provisions of Shaheen’s legislation were included in the fiscal year (FY) 2021 government funding legislation that was signed into law. Shaheen also recently responded to the release of the first Pease Health Study Report – a first-in-the-nation study she helped establish to better understand the impacts of PFAS in drinking water. Shaheen also secured funding in the committee-passed National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2025 for the PFAS health impact study.
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