Letter to the Hon. Thomas E. Price, M.D., Secretary of Health and Human Services, Brenda Fitzgerald, M.D. Director for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - Continue Assistance for East Chicago Residents From HHS and CDC

Letter

Dear Secretary Price and Director Fitzgerald:

As you are both well aware, the residents of the communities impacted by the USS Lead Superfund Site in East Chicago, Indiana have significant concerns regarding the potential health effects of their exposure to lead, arsenic, and other contaminants. We appreciate the efforts from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to date, and we are writing to request your continued assistance for the residents and the City of East Chicago.

The City and the State of Indiana have been working to provide free blood testing to impacted residents, which has been helpful in identifying residents needing the most immediate treatment and care. Given the lengthy timeframe residents have potentially been subjected to cumulative exposures, however, residents are rightfully concerned about the long-term impacts to their health and well-being. We ask that HHS work with the City to identify opportunities available to improve treatment, prevention, and education programs for area residents. We also ask that HHS detail its ability to provide long-term health monitoring and treatment for impacted residents, both past and present.

We understand that the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) is updating its public health assessment to evaluate the health impacts to residents from exposure to contaminants. We urge CDC to ensure that the assessment is a thorough examination of the cumulative, long-term exposure residents face through all potential exposure pathways while living, working, and playing in the neighborhood. We also urge the CDC to provide a meaningful opportunity for the City of East Chicago, its Health Department, and other stakeholders to comment on the ATSDR's revised Health Assessment, and that the ATSDR take into account relevant current and historic testing data from all reliable sources.

The residents of the USS Lead Superfund Site deserve to be confident that their homes and their neighborhoods are not harmful to their health. We look forward to continue working with you to give residents that confidence.

Sincerely

U.S. Senator Joe Donnelly

U.S. Senator Todd Young

US. Representative Peter J. Visclosky

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