Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions

Floor Speech

STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS -- (Senate - July 31, 2008)

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By Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Mr. Gregg, Mr. Dodd, Mr. Burr, Mr. Harkin, and Mr. Alexander):

S. 3385. A bill to amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act with respect to the safety of the food supply; to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, today I rise to introduce the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act.

Yesterday, the Food and Drug Administration, which is responsible for ensuring the safety of about 80 percent of our food supply, announced that it was one step closer to pinpointing the source of the current Salmonella Saintpaul outbreak. At first we were told tomatoes were the culprit. Then tomatoes were exonerated and jalapeno peppers in south Texas were to blame. Now FDA is saying it has discovered a strain of the bacteria in Serrano peppers from a farm in Tamaulipas, Mexico.

In the meantime, over three months have passed since the first reported case. At least 255 people have been hospitalized and two have died because of the outbreak. The tomato industry faces tens of millions of dollars in losses and a loss in consumer confidence. Some estimate that the economic impact may be as much as $100 to $500 million.

Over the last couple of years we have seen news headlines about E. coli in spinach, pet food spiked with melamine, Salmonella-tainted peanut butter, and now contaminated peppers. It's clear that these are not isolated cases but the product of a food safety system that is outdated, under-funded, and overwhelmed. Some of our most important food safety statutes date back to the early 1900s. Standards have not been updated. The budgets of the agencies that act as watchdogs over the system have eroded. We import more of our food than ever but we don't have the systems in place to make sure this food is as safe as it could be. All these shortcomings put consumers at unnecessary risk.

FDA is struggling to keep up. There are holes in its ability to protect consumers from unsafe foods. For example, the Consumer Protection Safety Commission, the EPA, and even FDA with respect to infant formula all have recall authority. But FDA is unable to pull any other contaminated food off the shelf when the company that makes it will not. FDA can suggest a recall and most of the time companies comply. But there are always bad actors and sometimes companies choose not to recall their products because they are afraid of upsetting consumer confidence or losing market share. In this case, FDA's hands are tied.

These are significant gaps in our food safety system that need to be addressed. We can and should do better.

That is why I am pleased to introduce The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, along with Senators GREGG, DODD, BURR, HARKIN, and ALEXANDER. This bill is a comprehensive, bipartisan effort that addresses some of the weaknesses in FDA's authorities and resources and updates food safety standards to make important improvements in our current food safety system. The bill includes a number of important preventive measures, such as increasing the frequency of FDA inspections of food facilities, especially high-risk facilities; directing FDA to set standards for fresh produce; and requiring the food industry to control hazards in the food supply chain. It also enables FDA to more effectively respond to an outbreak by giving the agency new authorities to order recalls, shut down tainted facilities, and access records to track and trace food.

The food industry is one of the most important sectors of our economy, generating more than $1 trillion annually in economic activity and employing millions of American workers. Food is also a deeply personal experience, a part of our daily lives and our traditions and culture. For far too long Congress has gone without a comprehensive review of our food safety laws. As long as we continue to do nothing, we will pay the price for an outdated and ill-equipped food safety system.

I thank Senators GREGG, DODD, BURR, HARKIN, and ALEXANDER for joining me in crafting this bill and urge my colleagues to support.

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By Mr. DURBIN:

S. 3390. A bill to amend the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 to provide for the treatment of institutions of higher education as voter registration agencies; to the Committee on Rules and Administration.

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Student Voter Opportunity to Encourage Registration Act of 2008--the Student VOTER Act.

The success of America's experiment in democracy lies in broad participation and deep civic engagement. From the Reconstruction Amendments, to women's suffrage, to the abolition of the poll tax, and finally the ratification of the 26th amendment, we have witnessed a steady but difficult march toward a more inclusive nation.

To realize the full potential of these great strides, the Student VOTER Act provides a pathway to participation for America's youth.

The need for this bill is clear. Despite a small rise in youth voting in the current Presidential election cycle, the larger trend is unmistakable. Young voters--historically independent-minded--are far less likely to cast a ballot than older voters. In the 2004 Presidential election, only 47 percent of 18 to 24-year-old citizens voted, compared to 66 percent of citizens 25 and older. This marked the eighth straight Presidential contest in which less than half of these young Americans actually participated. In fact, the percentage of young Americans who vote today is lower than it was in the first Presidential election following the 26th amendment's ratification.

Several obstacles stand in the way of youth voting. Because so many students are first-time voters, they often are unfamiliar with how to register. In some States, first-time voters must register in person in order to cast an absentee ballot. For students who attend college outside of their home State or who do not have access to transportation, these requirements can be cumbersome, confusing, and insurmountable.

Of course, apathy contributes to the fact that young voters tend to stay home on election day. But studies show that when an effort is made to reach out to young voters, they will cast a ballot. If we fail to reach out to the youth, we may lose a generation of civically minded Americans.

Congress already tried to encourage youth voting with a provision in the Higher Education Act of 1998, which requires colleges and universities to make a ``good faith effort'' to register students to vote. Many universities fulfill that obligation. For example, even before orientation begins, Brown University in Providence provides its students with voter registration materials not only for Rhode Island but also for each student's home State.

Unfortunately, too many colleges and universities have failed to follow Brown's lead. According to a 2004 Harvard University study, only 17 percent of colleges and universities nationwide fully comply with the Higher Education Act. The health of our democracy suffers as a result.

The Student VOTER Act offers a straightforward solution: it requires colleges and universities that receive Federal funds to offer voter registration services to students. The Student VOTER Act simply amends the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, popularly known as the Motor Voter Act, to designate colleges and universities that receive Federal funds as voter registration agencies.

That designation is fitting. Our institutions of higher education are among the wealthiest in the world, and they lead the globe in producing Nobel laureates and scientific breakthroughs. But colleges and universities also have a special obligation to educate an active, informed citizenry.

The act does not impose a heavy burden on colleges and universities. We know this because the Student VOTER Act builds on the successful model of the Motor Voter Act, which brought voter registration to DMV offices across the country, adding 5 million voters--mainly independents--to the rolls in the 8 months after its passage. While some DMV offices simply mail completed registration forms to the appropriate clerk or registrar, others now use efficient, easy-to-use computer software to submit registrations electronically.

This means that the price tag of the Student VOTER Act to colleges and universities is at most a 42-cent stamp for each student. I know most of my fellow Senators would agree that this is not too high a price to pay for a lifetime of civic engagement.

In reality, costs should be even lower. Colleges and universities can provide voter registration services at student orientation or during class registration using the same technology that DMV offices already have implemented.

Like the Motor Voter Act, this bill should pass with broad bipartisan support. It is a low-cost, commonsense solution to the very real problem of low youth voter turnout. It represents a natural but modest extension of the Higher Education Act and the Motor Voter Act without changing or amending any other State or Federal voting regulations in any way.

The bill may also serve to depoliticize voter registration efforts on college campuses. Polls consistently show that young voters are less likely to identify with a political party than older voters. Polls generally show that more than 4 in 10 young voters identify as independents, with roughly 3 in 10 young voters identifying with each of the two major political parties. In a July 30, 2008 letter sent to Congress in support of this bill, the U.S. Student Association explained that under the present system, ``partisan student groups often become the main voter registrants, which can alienate undecided and independent voters. The Student VOTER Bill of 2008 seeks to institutionalize the dissemination of voting procedure and register more young people in a systematic and non-partisan capacity.''

In addition to the U.S. Student Association, this bill is supported by U.S. PIRG and the Student Association for Voter Empowerment, SAVE. In particular, I would like to recognize Matthew Segal, SAVE's founder and a Chicago native, with whom my office worked closely to prepare this bill.

I would also like to applaud the efforts of Representative Jan Schakowsky, a Democrat, and Representative Steven LaTourette, a Republican, who will introduce a companion bill today in the House of Representatives. The Student VOTER Bill of 2008 is a bipartisan effort that is an important step toward empowering our Nation's youth. I look forward to working with my Democratic and Republican colleagues in Congress to ensure its enactment into law.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the RECORD.

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Mr. DURBIN. Prescription drugs can restore health, prevent illness, and extend lives. But deciding whether to prescribe a drug, and which one, requires a careful balancing of potential benefits, risks, and costs.

Prescribing should not be determined by how heavily a drug is promoted by a pharmaceutical company. Sadly, this is largely what happens today.

Our health care system does not generate objective, easy-to-access information for doctors to guide them when it comes to prescribing options.

New drugs are constantly entering the marketplace, but there's very little objective information about what drug might be marginally safer or more effective than existing drugs.

Even the most vigilant doctors would be challenged to monitor the dozens of medical journals that could contain a helpful study comparing the safety and effectiveness of drugs.

The pharmaceutical industry has taken advantage of this information void.

It spends about $7 billion a year marketing to physicians and sends over 90,000 sales representatives, called detailers, to pitch their company's latest and most expensive drugs.

What the drug industry is doing is not education. It is promotion. And there's a big difference between the two.

The drug company sales representatives are hired more for their charisma than their scientific knowledge, and they provide doctors with information skewed to portray their company's product in the most favorable light.

The sales representatives arrive with free lunches and free drug samples. Lucrative speaking and consulting fees are possible for doctors who change their prescribing to the liking of a drug company.

The consequence of such a system is clear: an over-reliance on prescribing the latest, most expensive drugs even when existing drugs are as effective, as safe, or cost less.

The pain-reliever Vioxx provides a cautionary tale of what can happen when marketing prowess trumps evidence-based medicine.

Heavy marketing quickly made Vioxx a blockbuster drug with $3 billion a year in sales, despite a lack of evidence that it could provide any greater pain relief for most patients than Advil and despite early indications that it increased the risk of heart attacks. Many Americans needlessly paid more and placed themselves at risk because the benefits of Vioxx were oversold and the risks minimized.

Another example is the marketing of calcium-channel blockers in 1990s. Heavy marketing increased the sales of the new patent-protected calcium-channel blockers but decreased sales of other blood-pressure drugs, such as thiazide diuretics and betablockers, that were cheaper and often more effective.

A more recent example is the cholesterol drug Vytorin. The new drug has been heavily marketed since it was introduced in 2004. But a study released earlier this year did not find that Vytorin was any better at limiting plaque buildup in the arteries than Zocor, an older cholesterol drug that recently came out in a lower-priced generic form.

We have to find a better way to educate physicians about prescription drug options and fill the void of medical information that the drug industry is now taking advantage of.

Part of the solution is academic detailing, an idea first developed by Jerry Avorn, a physician at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.

Academic detailing programs use some of the marketing tools that the drug industry has used so effectively, such as office visits to physicians and easy-to-read materials, but employs them to promote appropriate prescribing, based on an objective analysis of the medical literature.

These programs--which send trained nurses and pharmacists, armed with unbiased information, to doctors' office--have been shown to generate $2 in savings for every $1 that it costs to implement them.

Pennsylvania's PACE program is the State's pharmacy assistance program for low- and moderate-income seniors, and it runs the most notable publicly funded academic detailing program.

The PACE academic detailing program has reduced costs associated with the overuse of Nexium, an acid-reflux drug for which there are similar lower-cost alternatives, and reduced the use of Cox-2 inhibitors such as Vioxx.

Today, I am joining Senator Kohl and Senators Kennedy and Casey in introducing legislation that would promote additional academic detailing programs.

The Independent Drug Education and Outreach Act would provide funds to medical schools, schools of pharmacies, and others for the development of educational materials based on what unbiased, peer-reviewed medical literature says about appropriate prescribing for a particular condition.

The bill also would provide funds to ten governmental or non-profit groups to train nurses and pharmacists and to send them to physician offices to present and discuss this information directly with physicians.

The bill includes protections against financial conflicts of interest and calls on the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality to review the accuracy of the information provided to doctors.

The Independent Drug Education and Outreach Act would begin to fix one of the glaring shortcomings of our current health care system: the lack of a systematic way of disseminating information on the relative benefits, risks, and costs of various treatment options directly to doctors.

When it comes to prescription drugs, newer isn't necessarily better. In many cases, they are not.

We can no longer afford to rely on drug company salespersons to be doctors' primary source of information about new drugs.

I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

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