[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 63 (Wednesday, May 8, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E733-E734]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      PERSIAN GULF SYNDROME HEALTH BENEFITS EXTENSION ACT OF 1996

                                 ______


                            HON. JACK QUINN

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Wednesday, May 8, 1996

  Mr. QUINN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce legislation which 
extends priority healthcare to Persian Gulf war veterans who served in 
Israel and Turkey. My bill is entitled the ``Persian Gulf Syndrome 
Health Benefits Extension Act of 1996.'' The bill has received 
bipartisan support from my colleagues on the House Veterans' Affairs 
Committee.
  Men and women who served during the Persian Gulf war in Israel and 
Turkey were originally excluded from the definition of in-theatre 
operations. Many of these soldiers suffer from similar undiagnosed 
medical problems that may be related to service during the Persian Gulf 
war.
  Throughout my service on the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, I 
have emphasized the need to alleviate the suffering of those 
individuals afflicted with the Persian Gulf syndrome.

[[Page E734]]



                          FDA AND FOOD SAFETY

                                 ______


                        HON. JOHN J. DUNCAN, JR.

                              of tennessee

                    in the house of representatives

                         Wednesday, May 8, 1996

  Mr. DUNCAN. Mr. Speaker, I am not a chemist. I am not an expert in 
determining product safety. However, there seems to be conflicting 
reports about a situation brought to my attention by a constituent. I 
have serious concerns when the health of children is involved. If there 
is a possible health risk, then I believe that the Food and Drug 
Administration [FDA] needs to look very closely at this situation 
keeping the welfare of children in mind.
  In June 1994, my office was contacted by one of my constituents, Mael 
Kersavage, the president of Contemporary Beverages, Inc. Mr. Kersavage 
said that his company, based in Knoxville, TN, was a distributor of 
health-oriented beverages.
  Contemporary Beverages, in conjunction with another firm, developed a 
sparkling fruit juice beverage in order to offer schoolchildren a 
healthier alternative to sugar and caffeine laden soft drinks.
  Mr. Kersavage further states that both the FDA and the U.S. 
Department of Agriculture [USDA] allowed this beverage to be served in 
school cafeterias nationwide. The beverage was endorsed by the USDA as 
a beverage that could be served in schools during mealtimes.
  Since Mr. Kersavage served as a distributor for this product, in 
March 1994, he was contacted by an East Tennessee school system which 
complained that the beverages appeared to have a strange odor, cloudy 
appearance, and foreign objects floating in the bottles.
  After personally inspecting the beverages, Mr. Kersavage was 
extremely concerned that these contaminated beverages were being 
offered to schoolchildren. He instructed the school system and his 
company subdistributors to immediately discontinue dispensing the 
beverages.
  Mr. Kersavage learned that approximately 10,000 cases of the 
contaminated beverages had been distributed throughout the Southeast. 
He then contacted the FDA in June 1994.
  After persevering through the FDA's labyrinth of bureaucracy, which 
was exemplified by being continually transferred from one FDA office to 
another, he finally was able to present documentation with regard to 
the contaminated beverages. Mr. Kersavage requested that the FDA recall 
this product. However, the FDA told Mr. Kersavage that it was the 
responsibility of the manufacturer to recall the products.
  For more than a year, my office and Mr. Kersavage consistently 
contacted the FDA, and Mr. Kersavage provided evidentiary information, 
including samples of the contaminated product. I, as well as Mr. 
Kersavage, were concerned about any potential danger to schoolchildren 
consuming the beverages.
  I believe that the FDA should protect the health of our school 
children. Therefore, I think that when instances, such as the one I 
have described, are brought to the attention of the FDA it should take 
immediate and appropriate actions to ensure that products consumed by 
schoolchildren are safe, and the discretion to recall the product 
should not be left up to the manufacturer.

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