[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 4 (Wednesday, January 8, 2014)]
[House]
[Pages H36-H39]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
POISON CENTER NETWORK ACT
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill
(H.R. 3527) to amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize the
poison center national toll-free number, national media campaign, and
grant program, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 3527
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 ``Poison Center Network Act''.
SEC. 2. REAUTHORIZATION OF POISON CONTROL CENTERS NATIONAL
TOLL-FREE NUMBER.
Section 1271 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C.
300d-71) is amended by striking subsection (b) and inserting
the following:
``(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this section, $700,000 for
each of fiscal years 2015 through 2019 for the maintenance of
the nationwide toll free phone number under subsection
(a).''.
SEC. 3. REAUTHORIZATION OF NATIONWIDE MEDIA CAMPAIGN TO
PROMOTE POISON CONTROL CENTER UTILIZATION.
Section 1272 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C.
300d-72) is amended--
(1) in subsection (c)(2), by striking the comma after
``Congress''; and
(2) by striking subsection (d) and inserting the following:
``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this section, $800,000 for
each of fiscal years 2015 through 2019.''.
SEC. 4. REAUTHORIZATION OF THE POISON CONTROL CENTER GRANT
PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--Section 1273 of the Public Health Service
Act (42 U.S.C. 300d-73) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) by striking ``certified'' and inserting ``accredited'';
and
(B) by striking ``certification'' and inserting
``accreditation'';
(2) in subsection (b)--
(A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``establish'' and
inserting ``research, establish, implement,'';
(B) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through (7) as
paragraphs (5) through (8);
(C) by inserting after paragraph (3), the following:
``(4) to research, improve, and enhance the communications
and response capability and capacity of the nation's network
of poison control centers to facilitate increased access to
the Centers through the integration and modernization of the
current poison control centers communications and data
system, including enhancing the network's telephony,
Internet, data and social networking technologies;'';
(D) in paragraph (6) (as so redesignated), by striking
``paragraph (4)'' and inserting ``paragraph (5)''; and
(E) in paragraph (8) (as so redesignated), by striking
``and respond'' and inserting ``and Internet communications,
and to sustain and enhance the poison control center's
network capability to respond'';
(3) in subsection (c)--
(A) in the subsection heading, by striking
``Certification'' and inserting ``Accreditation'';
(B) by striking ``certified'' each place that such term
appears and inserting ``accredited''; and
(C) by striking ``certification'' each place that such term
appears and inserting ``accreditation'';
(4) in subsection (d)--
(A) in the subsection heading, by striking
``Certification'' and inserting ``Accreditation'';
(B) in paragraph (1)--
(i) by striking ``the certification'' and inserting ``the
accreditation'';
(ii) by striking ``a noncertified'' and inserting ``a
nonaccredited''; and
(iii) by striking ``a certification'' and inserting ``an
accreditation''; and
(C) in paragraph (3)--
(i) by striking the last sentence; and
(ii) by striking ``exceed 5 years.'' and inserting the
following ``exceed--
``(A) 5 years; or
``(B) in the case of a nonaccredited poison control center
operating pursuant to a waiver under this subsection as of
October 1, 2014, 6 years.'';
(5) in subsection (f), by striking ``for activities of the
center'' and inserting ``for its activities''; and
(6) by striking subsection (g) and inserting the following:
``(g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this section, $28,600,000 for
each of
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fiscal years 2015 through 2019. The Secretary may utilize an
amount not to exceed 6 percent of the amount appropriated
under this preceding sentence in each fiscal year for
coordination, dissemination, technical assistance, program
evaluation, data activities, and other program administration
functions, which are determined by the Secretary to be
appropriate for carrying out the program under this
section.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a)
shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act
and shall apply to grants made on or after October 1, 2014.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Pennsylvania (Mr. Pitts) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Pennsylvania.
General Leave
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
insert extraneous materials in the Record on the bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Pennsylvania?
There was no objection.
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3527, the Poison Center Network Act, introduced by
Representative Lee Terry of Nebraska, reauthorizes important activities
related to poison control centers. Specifically, the bill reauthorizes
the National Poison Center toll-free number, the Poison Center's
national media campaign, and the State grant program which funds 56
poison control centers around the United States.
The Department of Health and Human Services estimates that in any
given year, there will be between 3 million and 5 million poison
exposures. Sixty percent of these exposures will involve children under
the age of 6 who are exposed to toxins in their homes.
Poisoning is the second-most common form of unintentional death in
the United States and accounts for 285,000 hospitalizations a year.
According to a report from the Institute of Medicine, every $1 spent on
Poison Control Center services saves $7 in medical spending.
I would urge all my colleagues to support this bipartisan bill, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I rise in strong support of H.R. 3527, the Poison Center Network Act.
{time} 1300
Mr. Speaker, this important legislation, which passed the Energy and
Commerce Committee by unanimous consent in December, reauthorizes the
national toll-free phone number, media campaign, and grant program
which have helped make poison centers an incredibly successful program.
First passed in 2000, national poison center legislation was
championed by our current Energy and Commerce Committee chairman, Mr.
Upton, and our former colleague, Ed Towns. Since then, the national
poison center legislation has been reauthorized twice, and I am proud
to say it remains a very bipartisan product.
Chairman Terry, thank you for your leadership on this issue over the
years and your hard work on this reauthorization. This is a good,
bipartisan bill, and I am pleased to have had the opportunity to work
on it with you.
Poison exposure is a leading cause of unintentional injuries in the
United States, and it was the second leading cause of unintentional
injury deaths in 2010. According to a recent Lewin Group report,
poisonings accounted for over 2.1 million emergency room visits and
438,000 hospitalizations in the year 2009 alone. I think most of us
with children remember either having a magnet on our refrigerator or a
sticker on our phone providing the contact information for the poison
center in our area.
The experts that staff our Nation's network of 56 poison centers are
available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. In 2012,
poison centers handled, on average, 9,200 cases per day for a total of
almost 3.4 million cases over the course of the year. Over 90 percent
of calls into poison centers were due to a poison exposure in someone's
home, and approximately half of all cases involved children under the
age of 6 who were exposed to toxins in their home.
In my home State of New York, we have two poison centers that,
between the two of them, field over 164,000 calls per year. The New
York City poison center found that 88 percent of all exposures to a
dangerous substance occurred within someone's own residence. Many of
these calls were related to the accidental ingestion of various
cleaning products or detergents, but in 2012, the New York City poison
center also fielded over 2,000 calls regarding prescription
painkillers.
For the upstate New York poison center in 2012, 85 percent of calls
were related to unintentional poisonings, 62 percent involved children
under the age of 5, and, most importantly, 82 percent of cases could be
managed over the phone and did not require a visit to a doctor or a
hospital if hospitalization is necessary.
In 2011, poison centers helped avoid an estimated 1.7 million
unnecessary health care visits and have been shown to decrease the
amount of time an individual spends in the hospital. While a visit to
the emergency room can cost hundreds of dollars, and a hospitalization
can cost thousands, a phone call to a poison center only costs around
$30, which shows poison centers continue to be a smart public health
investment.
I think it is also important to note that poison centers are an
incredibly valuable resource to health care providers. Poison centers
provide access to board-certified medical toxicologists which can
assist with the triage, diagnosis, and treatment of patients with known
or suspected poisoning.
Poison centers are a true partnership between Federal, State, and
local governments, as well as in the private sector. In 2011, poison
centers obtained only 13 percent of their funding from Federal grants,
while 62 percent came from State and local government and 25 percent
from private funders like hospitals and insurers. Adequate funding from
all sources is important in order to continue to provide high-quality
experts and services in the name of poison prevention for our
constituents.
Mr. Speaker, by all accounts, poison centers have been an incredible
success and a program that we should all be proud to be a part of. In
addition to my gratitude towards Mr. Terry, I would also again like to
thank Chairman Upton for his leadership on this issue, as well as
Ranking Member Waxman, Chairman Pitts, and Ranking Member Pallone for
their assistance in bringing this bill, first, before the Energy and
Commerce Committee and to the floor today.
As the lead Democrat on this bipartisan legislation, I urge my
colleagues to support this legislation, and I reserve the balance of my
time.
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I am pleased to yield 2 minutes
to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Upton), the distinguished chairman
of the Energy and Commerce Committee.
Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my friends, Mr. Engel, the
lead Democratic cosponsor of this bipartisan legislation, as well as
Mr. Terry, who has helped champion this, not only in this Congress, but
for the last number of years, as well.
This bill needs to get done. H.R. 3527 is really good legislation,
and it's bipartisan. It funds more than 50 poison control centers
across the country. In 2012, almost 4 million calls were managed by our
Nation's poison control centers. These centers and the physicians, the
nurses, the pharmacists, and toxicology specialists who staff them save
lives by providing free and confidential health services regarding
potential exposure to harmful toxins 24/7 and in 150 different
languages.
So let me tell you about Michigan. The Michigan Regional Poison
Control Center at DMC Children's Hospital in Detroit is one of the
largest and busiest poison centers in the country, offering leadership
in new data collection processes and identification of new trends in
poisonings. The center provides assessment, triage, management, and
continued monitoring of more than 90,000 poison exposures in Michigan
every year at no direct cost to the patient, the practitioner, or the
health care institution.
Poison centers like this save money, as many of these crisis calls
avert an expensive trip to the emergency room. In fact, a 2012 report
by the independent Lewin Group determined that the Nation's poison
centers save more
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than $1.19 billion in avoided medical utilization and reduced hospital
length of stay every year. In addition, every $1 of funding saves about
$13 in unnecessary health care costs and lost productivity in the
country.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. PITTS. I yield the gentleman an additional 30 seconds.
Mr. UPTON. Our Nation's poison centers exemplify successful public-
private partnerships, with Federal funds providing only 18 percent of
the poison center budget. That partnership saves the Federal Government
a lot of money while also delivering access to critical services for
Americans across the country, let alone the lives that we save. So I
would ask every one of my colleagues to support this very important,
bipartisan legislation.
Again, I want to commend the leadership of Mr. Terry and Mr. Engel
for their continued effort on this to ``git-r-done.''
Mr. ENGEL. I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield as much time as he may
consume to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Terry), the prime sponsor
of the bill.
Mr. TERRY. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for recognizing me, and I thank the
gentleman from New York, my good friend. We have worked on several
bills together, but the poison control bill is certainly one of those
that we've been active on several years now. Thank you for your
involvement and your staff's involvement. They have done a great job.
Mr. Speaker, this is a bipartisan and a bicameral bill. Not only were
we in negotiations and just working together in a bipartisan way in the
House, but our team in the House, Eliot Engel and myself, have been
working with the Senate, and they have an identical bill to this.
This bill reauthorizes the national Poison Control Centers' toll-free
number, the Poison Centers' nationwide media campaign, and the grant
program which provides funds for over 50 poison centers nationwide,
including the one in Omaha, Nebraska, that I recently visited.
Currently, 56 poison centers serve all 50 States and its territories
24 hours a day, 7 days a week--yes, even Christmas. These centers
provide professional advice from doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and
toxicology specialists to people calling in with questions or concerns
regarding potential exposure to harmful toxins.
Nebraska's poison control center has a direct relationship with our
medical center, and you will find that very common in many communities
and States.
In 2010 alone, the annual report of the poison control centers
reported over 3 million calls received and served by the centers. In
2012, more than 3.9 million calls were managed by our Nation's poison
control centers.
Our national poison center network also serves as an ideal example of
private-public partnership that saves the Federal Government money--
billions of dollars each year--in avoided emergency room expenses while
delivering access to critical services. Eighty percent of the poison
centers' operating budget comes from non-Federal sources. In 2012, an
independent analysis found a large portion of the savings provided by
poison centers saved SCHIP, Medicare, and Medicaid funds more than $700
million a year just for those programs. America's utilization of the
Nation's poison control center information and case triage services
results in avoiding more than 1.7 million unnecessary visits to health
care facilities.
Now I am encouraging every Member of Congress to visit their State's
poison center where they will see great professionals work with
frightened people on the other side of that call in a remarkable way.
And I also encourage them to support this bill.
Mr. ENGEL. I have no further speakers, Mr. Speaker, so I yield back
the balance of my time.
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, we have no other speakers.
I would urge all Members to support this bill, H.R. 3527, in order to
save lives. It's a bipartisan, good bill that deserves every Member's
support.
And with that, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. WAXMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the bill before us:
H.R. 3527, the Poison Center Network Act.
This bill reauthorizes the Poison Control Program. I have been a
strong supporter of poison control centers over the years and co-
sponsored the 2000 legislation first authorizing the program.
There is currently a nationwide network of poison control centers--
due in large part to federal support for these centers. Poison control
centers play a crucial role in reducing injuries and deaths caused by
poison exposure, such as from household products, chemicals in the
workplace, and medicine. Studies have shown that these poison control
centers reduce the severity of illness and death caused by poison
exposure--a leading cause of unintentional injury death--and save money
by reducing the number of unnecessary trips to the emergency room.
In California alone, the poison control system has managed millions
of cases since its inception in 1997. The system consults on hundreds
of thousands of cases each year. And in just one year, the work of the
California system is estimated to save $70 million in health care costs
and avert more than 60,000 emergency room visits.
H.R. 3527 reauthorizes and makes enhancements to the ``Poison Center
Support, Enhancement, and Awareness Act of 2008.'' The bill extends
State grants to establish and operate poison centers; maintains a
national toll-free number to ensure access to poison center services by
connecting callers to the poison center serving their area; and
supports a national media campaign to educate the public and health
care providers about poison prevention, poison center services, and the
toll-free number.
I am glad we were able to work in a bipartisan manner to move this
important public health measure through our Committee and bring it to
the House floor today. I'd like to commend Energy and Commerce Members,
Representatives Eliot Engel and Lee Terry, for their leadership on this
bill.
I support this measure, and I urge my colleagues to join me in voting
in support of H.R. 3527.
Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3527, the Poison
Center Network Act.
This bipartisan legislation will continue the important grants to our
nation's 56 poison centers. These centers provide critical public
health support to every state and are responsible for helping to reduce
the number of deaths and the severity of illness caused by poisoning.
They offer critical poison treatment advice and, in some cases,
function as direct-service providers.
Poison exposure is a leading cause of unintentional injury in the
United States. In fact, poison centers field approximately 3.6 million
calls every year, including 2.3 million calls about exposures to
poisons and adverse reactions to prescription drugs. By playing a role
within the health care infrastructure, poison control centers reduce
the cost burden on our health system. Annually, of all the calls to a
poison control centers about a potential poisoning, nearly 90 percent
of the calls are managed on-site and outside of a health care facility.
This means that a caller gets the help they need over the phone without
having to go to a doctor or the hospital. Both of which would be much
more costly to the system. In addition, these services are available 24
hours a day, seven days a week at no direct cost to the people who
call.
The poison control centers also help provide education and
surveillance through operation of their toll-free national poison help
line. In fact, poison centers are often the first to identify emerging
public health threats. In the past few years, they were credited with
identifying key health issues, for example regarding, energy drinks.
They also were able to track the incidence of numerous food-borne
illnesses.
Today's bill will continue these grants to support the work of these
critical poison control centers. The return on federal investment is
substantial and the work of the centers is proven to be valuable and
effective.
Thank you to our Energy and Commerce Committee Members, Mr. Engel and
Mr. Terry, for their leadership on this bill. I urge all Members to
support its passage.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Pitts) that the House suspend the
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 3527, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
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