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[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5181 Introduced in House (IH)]

110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5181

   To amend the Public Health Service Act to establish a program of 
research regarding the risks posed by the presence of dioxin, synthetic 
   fibers, and other additives in feminine hygiene products, and to 
 establish a program for the collection and analysis of data on toxic 
                            shock syndrome.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 29, 2008

  Mrs. Maloney of New York (for herself, Ms. Sutton, Mr. McNulty, Ms. 
Jackson-Lee of Texas, Ms. Woolsey, and Mr. Abercrombie) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                                Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
   To amend the Public Health Service Act to establish a program of 
research regarding the risks posed by the presence of dioxin, synthetic 
   fibers, and other additives in feminine hygiene products, and to 
 establish a program for the collection and analysis of data on toxic 
                            shock syndrome.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Robin Danielson Act''.

 TITLE I--RESEARCH REGARDING RISKS POSED BY DIOXIN, SYNTHETIC FIBERS, 
            AND OTHER ADDITIVES IN FEMININE HYGIENE PRODUCTS

SEC. 101. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds as follows:
            (1) Tampons are used by approximately 73,000,000 women in 
        the United States today, and the average woman may use as many 
        as 16,800 tampons in her lifetime. A woman on estrogen 
        replacement therapy may use as many as 24,360 tampons in her 
        lifetime.
            (2) The Environmental Protection Agency and the 
        International Agency for Research on Cancer, an arm of the 
        World Health Organization, have concluded that dioxins are a 
        probable human carcinogen (cancer causing agent).
            (3) According to the Food and Drug Administration, dioxins 
        are formed as a result of combustion processes such as 
        commercial and municipal waste incineration and from burning 
        fuels (like wood, coal, or oil). Dioxins are a byproduct of 
        chlorine bleaching of pulp and paper.
            (4) Tampons currently sold in the United States are 
        composed of cotton, rayon, or of a combination of cotton and 
        rayon. Rayon is produced from cellulose fibers derived from 
        bleached wood pulp.
            (5) While bleaching processes that do not produce dioxin in 
        any amount are available, most wood pulp manufacturers, 
        currently use elemental-chlorine free bleaching processes. This 
        process uses chlorine dioxide as a bleaching agent and still 
        produces dioxins.
            (6) The Food and Drug Administration has not explicitly 
        forbidden the use of chlorine in tampon manufacturing.
            (7) Trace amounts of dioxins can also be found in tampons 
        that use a chlorine-free bleaching process as well as 100 
        percent cotton tampons as the Environmental Protection Agency 
        states that due to decades of pollution, dioxin can be found in 
        the air, water, and ground and thus can be found in both cotton 
        and wood pulp raw materials used in tampon production.
            (8) The effects of dioxin from various sources are 
        cumulative. Women may be exposed to dioxin in tampons and other 
        menstrual products for as long as 60 years over the course of 
        their reproductive lives.
            (9) The Food and Drug Administration has historically 
        relied on data provided by manufacturers of feminine hygiene 
        products in determining product safety.
            (10) Although the Food and Drug Administration currently 
        requires tampon manufacturers to monitor dioxin levels in their 
        finished products, they do not generally collect this 
        information and it is not readily available to the public.
            (11) Recent studies have produced conflicting information 
        about the link between dioxin exposure and increased risks for 
        endometriosis.
            (12) The Environmental Protection Agency has concluded that 
        people with high levels of exposure to dioxins may be at risk 
        for other noncancer effects that could suppress the immune 
        system, increase the risk of pelvic inflammatory disease, 
        reduce fertility, and interfere with fetal and childhood 
        development.
            (13) Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS) has been linked to tampon 
        use and the absorbency of the tampon. TSS is a rare bacterial 
        illness that occurs mostly in menstruating women. During 1979 
        and 1980, the syndrome was responsible for at least 55 deaths 
        and 1,066 nonfatal cases.
            (14) In response to a 1988 lawsuit, the Food and Drug 
        Administration has required tampons to be labeled with 
        reference to an absorbency standard (e.g., super tampons must 
        absorb between 9 and 12 grams of liquid).
            (15) As a result of independent research that showed that 
        synthetic fiber additives in tampons amplify toxin production, 
        which is associated with toxic shock syndrome, manufacturers 
        have ceased to include three of the four synthetic ingredients 
        once often used to increase tampon absorbency. Highly absorbent 
        viscose rayon is still used in tampon production.

SEC. 102. NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH; RESEARCH ON DIOXIN PURSUANT TO 
              OFFICE OF RESEARCH ON WOMEN'S HEALTH.

    Part F of title IV of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 287d 
et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following section:

``SEC. 486C. CERTAIN PROJECTS REGARDING WOMEN'S HEALTH.

    ``(a) Dioxin in Feminine Hygiene Products.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Director of NIH, in collaboration 
        with the Director of the Office, shall provide for the conduct 
        or support of research to determine the extent to which the 
        presence of dioxin, synthetic fibers, and other additives in 
        tampons and other feminine hygiene products--
                    ``(A) poses any risks to the health of women who 
                use the products, including risks relating to cervical 
                cancer, endometriosis, infertility, ovarian cancer, 
                breast cancer, immune system deficiencies, pelvic 
                inflammatory disease, and toxic shock syndrome; and
                    ``(B) poses any risks to the health of children of 
                women who used such products during or before the 
                pregnancies involved, including risks relating to fetal 
                and childhood development.
            ``(2) Requirement regarding data from manufacturers.--
        Research under paragraph (1) shall include research to confirm 
        the data on tampons and other feminine hygiene products 
        submitted to the Commissioner of Food and Drugs by 
        manufacturers of such products.
            ``(3) Definition.--For purposes of paragraph (1), the term 
        `feminine hygiene products' means tampons, pads, liners, and 
        similar products used by women with respect to menstruation or 
        other genital-tract secretions.
    ``(b) Reports.--Reports on the results of research under subsection 
(a) shall be periodically submitted to the Congress, the Commissioner 
of Food and Drugs, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
Agency, and the Chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission. 
Such reports shall be made available to the public through the data 
system and clearinghouse program established under section 486A, or 
through other appropriate means.''.

   TITLE II--COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA ON TOXIC SHOCK SYNDROME

SEC. 201. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds as follows:
            (1) Of the cases of toxic shock syndrome in the United 
        States, approximately 50 percent are related to tampon use and 
        approximately 50 percent occur in nonmenstruating women and in 
        men and children.
            (2) The Centers for Disease Prevention and Control has 
        estimated that between one and two of every 100,000 women 15 to 
        44 years of age will develop the syndrome.
            (3) Epidemiological data on cases of toxic shock syndrome 
        are not systematically collected in the United States, and 
        information on cases seldom travels beyond the victim's circle 
        of family and friends. Toxic Shock Syndrome is a nationally 
        notifiable disease that States report to the Centers for 
        Disease Prevention and Control, but the reporting by the States 
        is voluntary.
            (4) According to the Council of State and Territorial 
        Epidemiologists, as of 2006, only 39 States required reporting 
        of streptococcal and non-streptococcal toxic shock syndrome to 
        State health officials.
            (5) The last active surveillance of toxic shock syndrome 
        occurred in 1987 only in four States and surveying 12 million 
        people. National surveillance is conducted through the National 
        Electronic Telecommunications Systems.
            (6) The Centers for Disease Prevention and Control and the 
        States should cooperate to collect and analyze such data. 
        Increasing the amount of information on toxic shock syndrome 
        will lead to increased awareness about the disease in the 
        medical community, and may also lead to an increased 
        understanding of the causes of the syndrome.

SEC. 202. CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION; ESTABLISHMENT OF 
              PROGRAM FOR COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA ON TOXIC 
              SHOCK SYNDROME.

    Part B of title III of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 243 
et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 317S the following 
section:

``SEC. 317T. COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA ON TOXIC SHOCK SYNDROME.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary, acting through the Director of 
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, shall carry out a 
program to collect, analyze, and make available data on toxic shock 
syndrome, including data on the causes of such syndrome.
    ``(b) National Incidence and Prevalence.--In carrying out the 
program under subsection (a), the Secretary shall to the extent 
practicable determine the national incidence and prevalence of toxic 
shock syndrome.
    ``(c) Cooperation With States.--The Secretary may carry out the 
program under subsection (a) directly and through grants to States and 
local health departments.
    ``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--For the purpose of carrying 
out this section, there are authorized to be appropriated such sums as 
may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 2012.''.
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