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“PERSIAN GULF SYNDROME HEALTH BENEFITS EXTENSION ACT OF 1996” mentioning the U.S. Dept of Agriculture was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E733-E734 on May 8, 1996.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
PERSIAN GULF SYNDROME HEALTH BENEFITS EXTENSION ACT OF 1996
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HON. JACK QUINN
of new york
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, May 8, 1996
Mr. QUINN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce legislation which extends priority healthcare to Persian Gulf war veterans who served in Israel and Turkey. My bill is entitled the ``Persian Gulf Syndrome Health Benefits Extension Act of 1996.'' The bill has received bipartisan support from my colleagues on the House Veterans' Affairs Committee.
Men and women who served during the Persian Gulf war in Israel and Turkey were originally excluded from the definition of in-theatre operations. Many of these soldiers suffer from similar undiagnosed medical problems that may be related to service during the Persian Gulf war.
Throughout my service on the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, I have emphasized the need to alleviate the suffering of those individuals afflicted with the Persian Gulf syndrome.
FDA AND FOOD SAFETY
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HON. JOHN J. DUNCAN, JR.
of tennessee
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, May 8, 1996
Mr. DUNCAN. Mr. Speaker, I am not a chemist. I am not an expert in determining product safety. However, there seems to be conflicting reports about a situation brought to my attention by a constituent. I have serious concerns when the health of children is involved. If there is a possible health risk, then I believe that the Food and Drug Administration [FDA] needs to look very closely at this situation keeping the welfare of children in mind.
In June 1994, my office was contacted by one of my constituents, Mael Kersavage, the president of Contemporary Beverages, Inc. Mr. Kersavage said that his company, based in Knoxville, TN, was a distributor of health-oriented beverages.
Contemporary Beverages, in conjunction with another firm, developed a sparkling fruit juice beverage in order to offer schoolchildren a healthier alternative to sugar and caffeine laden soft drinks.
Mr. Kersavage further states that both the FDA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture [USDA] allowed this beverage to be served in school cafeterias nationwide. The beverage was endorsed by the USDA as a beverage that could be served in schools during mealtimes.
Since Mr. Kersavage served as a distributor for this product, in March 1994, he was contacted by an East Tennessee school system which complained that the beverages appeared to have a strange odor, cloudy appearance, and foreign objects floating in the bottles.
After personally inspecting the beverages, Mr. Kersavage was extremely concerned that these contaminated beverages were being offered to schoolchildren. He instructed the school system and his company subdistributors to immediately discontinue dispensing the beverages.
Mr. Kersavage learned that approximately 10,000 cases of the contaminated beverages had been distributed throughout the Southeast. He then contacted the FDA in June 1994.
After persevering through the FDA's labyrinth of bureaucracy, which was exemplified by being continually transferred from one FDA office to another, he finally was able to present documentation with regard to the contaminated beverages. Mr. Kersavage requested that the FDA recall this product. However, the FDA told Mr. Kersavage that it was the responsibility of the manufacturer to recall the products.
For more than a year, my office and Mr. Kersavage consistently contacted the FDA, and Mr. Kersavage provided evidentiary information, including samples of the contaminated product. I, as well as Mr. Kersavage, were concerned about any potential danger to schoolchildren consuming the beverages.
I believe that the FDA should protect the health of our school children. Therefore, I think that when instances, such as the one I have described, are brought to the attention of the FDA it should take immediate and appropriate actions to ensure that products consumed by schoolchildren are safe, and the discretion to recall the product should not be left up to the manufacturer.
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