[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 57 (Thursday, April 19, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2547-S2548]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. REED (for himself and Mr. Isakson):
  S. 2301. A bill to help prevent the occurrence of cancer resulting 
from the use of ultraviolet tanning lamps by providing sufficient 
information to consumers regarding the health risks associated with the 
use of such devices; to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and 
Pensions.
  Mr. REED. Mr. President, today I am pleased to be joined by Senator 
Isakson in introducing the Tanning Transparency and Notification Act, 
or the TAN Act.
  This legislation is a continuation of an initiative that we worked on 
together five years ago during the Food and Drug Administration 
Amendments Act, FDAAA, of 2007. That initiative required the Food and 
Drug Administration, FDA, to issue a report to Congress on whether the 
labeling requirements for indoor tanning devices provide sufficient 
information to consumers regarding the risks that the use of such 
devices pose for the development of irreversible damage to the eyes and 
skin, including skin cancer.
  We called for this report in 2007 because the FDA had not updated its 
warnings on tanning beds since 1979. The FDA still has not acted and we 
believe that users of indoor tanning beds deserve to be fully informed. 
While the American Academy of Dermatology, the FDA, the National 
Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 
and the World Health Organization, WHO, continue to discourage the use 
of indoor tanning beds, this message and up-to-date information about 
the risks of indoor tanning are still not being adequately provided to 
consumers.
  Not surprisingly, the FDA found in its report to Congress that 
updating current labeling requirements for tanning beds would better 
protect consumers from irreversible skin damage. This is an excerpt 
from the FDA's own report:

       Based on its analysis of the results of the consumer study 
     required by section 230 of FDAAA, FDA has determined that 
     there are warnings that are capable of adequately 
     communicating the risks of indoor tanning,

[[Page S2548]]

     and that a modified warning statement label may more 
     effectively convey these risks than the current labeling 
     requirements. FDA has also determined that changes to the 
     positioning requirements for the warning statement label may 
     communicate such risks more effectively.

  Unfortunately, the FDA has not heeded its own advice. Tanning bed 
labels remain unchanged and skin cancer rates continue to rise. This 
year, approximately 131,810 new cases of melanoma will be diagnosed in 
the United States, and nearly 9,180 people will die from melanoma. Some 
of these cases result from the use of tanning beds.
  Two million Americans, approximately 70 percent of whom are girls and 
women, visit a tanning salon each day. The WHO reports that the risk of 
cutaneous melanoma increases by 75 percent when use of tanning devices 
starts before 30 years of age.
  Better informing these individuals about the incidence of melanoma, 
and increasing transparency and improving notification about the risks 
of indoor tanning are all ways to reduce skin cancer rates. The Tanning 
Transparency and Notification Act would require the FDA to carry out 
the recommendations in its report and update the labeling requirements 
for tanning beds.
  Initiatives like this can make a difference in the health of 
Americans. Indeed, just last year, the FDA finalized critical 
regulations--at my and others' urging--that were 30 years in the making 
regarding sunscreen labeling. Providing consumers with critical 
information about the risks of indoor and outdoor tanning can help 
better protect them against skin cancer. I look forward to working with 
my colleagues on improving the labeling of indoor tanning beds and 
continuing efforts to combat skin cancer.
                                 ______