Bob Dole: “I wanted to make my colleagues aware of a situation that has developed at the Department of Health and Human Services…”

“I wanted to make my colleagues aware of a situation that has developed at the Department of Health and Human Services that may have an enormous impact on over 1,300 employees in my State of Kansas at three fiberglass insulation production facilities in McPherson and Kansas City, KS. Under the National Toxicology Program, the Department will soon issue the seventh annual report on carcinogens. The recommendation of the interagency working group of the NTP was to include glass wool, respirable size, on the list of substances reasonably anticipated to be a carcinogen. However, Mr. President, the working group also voted to recommend that a review was needed of the criteria by which ARC decisions are made generally, and in particular, to review whether the existing criteria are appropriate for assessing fiber carcinogenicity. Basically, Mr. President, the question is this: Why should this substance be officially listed as a possible cancer hazard under the old criteria when a recommended criteria review has yet to be completed? It is my understanding there is a considerable body of evidence recently completed in Canada that supports the industry contention that inclusion on the list is not warranted.”