[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1680 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1680

  To prohibit after 2008 the introduction into interstate commerce of 
 mercury intended for use in a dental filling, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 8, 2003

   Ms. Watson (for herself and Mr. Burton of Indiana) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                                Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To prohibit after 2008 the introduction into interstate commerce of 
 mercury intended for use in a dental filling, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Mercury in Dental Filling 
Disclosure and Prohibition Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

     The Congress finds as follows:
            (1) Mercury is a highly toxic element.
            (2) A dental amalgam, commonly referred to as a ``silver 
        filling'', consists of 43 to 54 percent mercury.
            (3) Consumers may be deceived by the use of the term 
        ``silver'' to describe a dental amalgam, which contains 
        substantially more mercury than silver.
            (4) Dental amalgam may contain about \1/2\ to \3/4\ of a 
        gram of mercury, depending on the size of the filling.
            (5) The mercury in a dental amalgam continually emits 
        mercury vapors.
            (6) Mercury toxicity is a retention toxicity that builds up 
        over years of exposure.
            (7) The California Dental Association, by court order, is 
        sending health warnings about mercury fillings to California 
        dental offices for posting by March 9, 2003. The warnings are 
        to read ``NOTICE TO PATIENTS: PROPOSITION 65 WARNING: Dental 
        Amalgam, used in many dental fillings, causes exposure to 
        mercury, a chemical known to the state of California to cause 
        birth defects or other reproductive harm''.
            (8) According to certain scientific studies, Health Canada, 
        and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry of the 
        Public Health Service of the Department of Health and Human 
        Services, children and pregnant women are at particular risk 
        for exposure to mercury contained in dental amalgam.
            (9) The United States Food and Drug Administration added 
        Health Canada warnings regarding mercury in dental amalgam to a 
        consumer update issued on December 31, 2002.
            (10) According to the Agency for Toxic Substances and 
        Disease Registry, the mercury from amalgam goes through the 
        placenta of pregnant women and through the breast milk of 
        lactating women, giving rise to health risks to an unborn child 
        or a baby.
            (11) The Environmental Protection Agency considers removed 
        amalgam filling and extracted teeth containing amalgam material 
        to be hazardous waste.
            (12) A report issued June 5, 2002, by the Mercury Policy 
        Project, the Sierra Club, Health Care Without Harm, and the 
        Toxics Action Center stated that because of mercury fillings 
        dental offices are now the leading source of mercury in the 
        Nation's wastewater.
            (13) The use of mercury in any product being put into the 
        body is opposed by many health groups, such as the American 
        Public Health Association, the California Medical Association, 
        and Health Care Without Harm.
            (14) Consumers and parents have a right to know, in 
        advance, the risks of placing a product containing a 
        substantial amount of mercury in their mouths or the mouths of 
        their children.
            (15) Alternatives to mercury-based dental fillings exist, 
        but many publicly and privately financed health plans do not 
        allow consumers to choose alternatives to mercury amalgam.

SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON INTRODUCTION OF DENTAL AMALGAM INTO INTERSTATE 
              COMMERCE.

    (a) Prohibition.--Section 501 of the Federal Food, Drug, and 
Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 351) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
    ``(j) Effective January 1, 2008, if it contains mercury intended 
for use in a dental filling.''.
    (b) Transitional Provision.--For purposes of the Federal Food, 
Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 301 et seq.), effective December 31, 
2004, and subject to subsection (a), a device that contains mercury 
intended for use in a dental filling shall be considered to be 
misbranded, unless it bears a label that provides as follows: ``Dental 
amalgam contains approximately 50 percent mercury, a highly toxic 
element. Such product should not be administered to children less than 
18 years of age, pregnant women, or lactating women. Such product 
should not be administered to any consumer without a warning that the 
product contains mercury, which is a highly toxic element, and 
therefore poses health risks.''.
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