,i  #aacth ,,congress  #b;d ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #dgdf  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,may #bh1 #bjad ,mrs4
 ,carolyn ,b4 ,maloney of ,new ,york    
7for herself1 ,mr4 ,farr1 and ,ms4      
,moore7 introduced the following bill2  
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 dioxin1 synthetic fibers1   
chemical fragrances1 and other          
components of feminine hygiene products4
  #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be    
cited as the ,robin ,danielson ,act of  
#bjad4  #b4 ,findings ,the ,congress    
finds as follows3  7#a7 ,feminine       
hygiene products are widely used by     
women in the ,united ,states today1 but 
there is not enough research on the     
components of these products4  7#b7     
,women may be exposed to substances in  
tampons and other menstrual products for
 as long as #fj years over the course of

 their reproductive lives4 ,the average 
woman may use as many as #af1hjj tampons
 in her lifetime4 ,a woman on menopausal
 hormone therapy may use as many as     
#bd1cfj tampons in her lifetime4  7#c7  
,trace amounts of dioxins can be found  
in tampons or other feminine hygiene    
products4 ,the ,environmental           
,protection ,agency and the             
,international ,agency for ,research on 
,cancer1 an arm of the ,world ,health   
,organization1 have concluded that      
dioxins are a probable human carcinogen 
7cancer-causing agent74  7#d7 ,the ,food
 and ,drug ,administration 7referred to 
in this section as the ,,fda7 has       
historically relied on data provided by 
manufacturers of feminine hygiene       
products in determining product safety4 
7#e7 ,although the ,,fda currently      
requires tampon manufacturers to        
routinely monitor dioxin levels in raw  
materials and finished tampons1 this    
information is not readily available to 
the public4 ,the ,,fda should consider  

whether to expand regulation to include 
other types of feminine hygiene products
 and a broader list of contaminants4    
#c4 ,research on dioxin and other       
potentially harmful components of       
feminine hygiene products ,part ,f of   
title ,,iv of the ,public ,health       
,service ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #bhg;d et  
seq47 is amended by adding at the end   
the following section3  #dhf;,c4        
,research on dioxin and other           
potentially harmful components of       
feminine hygiene products  7a7 ,research
  7#a7 ,in general ,the ,director of    
,,nih1 in collaboration with the        
,director of the ,office1 shall provide 
for the conduct or support of research  
to determine the extent to which the    
presence of dioxins1 synthetic fibers1  
chlorine1 and other components1         
including contaminants and substances   
used as fragrances1 in tampons and other
 feminine hygiene products--  7,a7 poses
 any risks to the health of women who   
use the products1 including risks       

relating to cervical cancer1            
endometriosis1 infertility1 ovarian     
cancer1 breast cancer1 immune system    
deficiencies1 pelvic inflammatory       
disease1 toxic shock syndrome1 and      
bacterial and yeast infections2 and     
7,b7 poses any risks to the health of   
children of women who used such products
 during or before the pregnancies       
involved1 including risks relating to   
fetal and childhood development4  7#b7  
,requirement regarding data from        
manufacturers ,research under paragraph 
7#a7 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 products4  7#c7   
,definition ,for purposes of paragraph  
7#a71 the term feminine hygiene products
 means tampons1 pads1 liners1 cups1     
sponges1 and similar products used by   
women with respect to menstruation or   
other genital-tract secretions4  7b7    
,reports ,reports on the results of     

research under subsection 7a7 shall be  
periodically submitted to the ,congress1
 the ,commissioner of ,food and ,drugs1 
the ,administrator of the ,environmental
 ,protection ,agency1 and the ,chairman 
of the ,consumer ,product ,safety       
,commission4 ,such reports shall be made
 available to the public through the    
data system and clearinghouse program   
established under section #dhf;,a1 or   
through other appropriate means4  7c7   
,authorization of appropriations ,for   
the purpose of carrying out this        
section1 there are authorized to be     
appropriated such sums as may be        
necessary for each of the fiscal years  
#bjae through #bjai4  4