Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions - S. 1780

STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

By Mr. BIDEN (for himself, Mr. Hatch, Mr. Grassley, and Mr. Harkin):

S. 1780. A bill to amend the Controlled Substances Act to clarify the definition of anabolic steroids and to provide for research and education activities relating to steroids and steroid precursors; to the Committee on the Judiciary.

Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I am pleased to join Senator BIDEN and Senator HATCH as a co-sponsor of the Steroid Control Act of 2003. Our youth need to understand that while the short-term use of steroids may seem beneficial, the long-term effects on overall health can be extremely harmful or even fatal. Adults need to be more vigilant in ensuring young people are not able to obtain these dangerous substances. The Steroid Control Act is an important step in working toward that goal.

According to the latest Monitoring the Future Survey, 2.5 percent of eighth graders, 3.5 percent of tenth graders and 4.0 percent of twelfth graders used steroids at least once during their lifetime. Teens in particular seem to believe the myth that steroid abuse, typically at 10 to 100 times what might be prescribed by a doctor, is a quick way to gain muscle mass with little cost.

But steroid abuse is associated with a range of physical and emotional problems. According to the National Drug Intelligence Center, the dangers associated with steroid use include liver tumors and cancer, jaundice, high blood pressure and increases in cholesterol levels, kidney tumors, fluid retention, and severe acne. Adolescents in particular risk prematurely halting their growth because of early skeletal maturation and acceleration of puberty. The emotional problems associated with steroid use include dramatic mood swings, including manic symptoms that can lead to violence called "roid" rage, depression, paranoid jealousy, extreme irritability, delusions, and impaired judgment.

This Bill makes clarifications to the Steroid Control Act passed in 1990. It will make it easier to add steroid precursors such as androstenedione, THG, and other similar substances—many of which have been developed since the Steroid Control Act of 1990 passed in order to evade the law—to the list of Schedule III anabolic steroids. In addition, it adds a number of known steroid precursors to the anabolic steroid list, and removes the requirement that a substance be proven to promote muscle growth.

The Steroid Control Act also directs the United States Sentencing Commission to review the Federal sentencing guidelines for crimes involving anabolic steroids. It provides an opportunity to conduct prevention programs for young students to educate them on the dangers of using steroids.

I encourage my colleagues to join us in supporting these important reforms.