HR 8537 Introduced
East Palestine Health Study
Back in May, Rep Joyce (R,OH) introduced HR 8537, the East Palestine Health Impact Monitoring Act of 2024. The bill would require HHS to conduct a study on the health effects of the 2023 East Palestine, OH train derailment. The bill would authorize “such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2025, to remain available until September 30, 2029, to carry out this Act”.
This bill is nearly identical to the reported version of S 4045. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee approved that revised language in markup hearing on May 23rd, 2024. No further action has been taken in the Senate.
Definitions
There are no definitions of key terms provided in this bill. This means that HHS will be responsible for determining the meaning of such terms as ‘longitudinal study’ in carrying out their responsibilities under this legislation.
Study
Section 2(a) would require the Department of Health and Human Services to award a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement to an eligible entity, for purposes of conducting a study on the human health impacts as a consequence of the February 3, 2023, train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, and subsequent venting and burning of liquid chemicals. The entity would be a consortium of public or private institutions of higher education that have “established relationships within the affected communities”.
An progress report on the study would be required to be submitted to Congress with a final report due in three years.
Section 2(d) provides authorizes “such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2025, to remain available until September 30, 2029, to carry out this Act”.
Moving Forward
Neither Joyce, nor any of his four cosponsors are members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee to which this bill was assigned for consideration. This means that there probably is no sufficient influence to see the bill considered in Committee. With the vague funding language, I suspect that if the bill were considered, it would receive some level of bipartisan support in Committee. Whether it would be enough to allow the bill to reach the floor under the suspension of the rules process remains to be seen.