WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) issued the following statement after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Agency for Toxic Disease Registry (ATSDR) issued updated guidance for clinicians regarding health effects from exposure to per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS):

“For years, we’ve known that PFAS presents complex and widespread challenges for public health and the environment. As the science continues to advance and we learn more about the ways high levels of PFAS exposure can adversely impact people’s health, it’s critical that health care providers stay updated so they can determine the best care for their patients. This new guidance for clinicians from the Agency for Toxic Disease Registry is a positive step, but there needs to be more definitive guidelines to ensure we are protecting the health of those in our community. I’ll keep doing all I can to ensure patients can access appropriate testing and follow up care.”

Shaheen has long worked to get clinicians guidance on testing and protocols based on recommendations made by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) in a 2022 report and leads efforts to uncover the health effects related to PFAS contamination. Shaheen also introduced bipartisan legislation in 2020, the Physician Education for PFAS Health Impacts Act, that would establish a grant program within the Department of Health and Human Services to fund the creation of training materials for physicians on the health effects of PFAS and best practices for caring for patients who have been exposed to PFAS. Key provisions of Shaheen’s legislation were included in the fiscal year (FY) 2021 government funding legislation that was signed into law. Shaheen also recently responded to the release of the first Pease Health Study Report – a first-in-the-nation study to better understand the impacts of PFAS in drinking water.

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