14
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 14, 2025) The Trump administration has undertaken an unprecedented attack on science in regulatory, research, and educational institutions, with predicted adverse consequences for all people across the country. The Union of Concerned Scientists last week published a list of organizations and their tracking of Trump’s dismantling of federal science programs, including health research and the impact by Congressional district. And, the Environmental Protection Network estimates that the announced rollbacks at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency would erase $254 billion in health and economic benefits. Perhaps it is understandable that those who oppose environmental and health regulations that put limits on industry would favor cuts to regulatory agencies. However, the impacts of the current cuts go far beyond deregulation. >> Tell your U.S. Representative and Senators to reverse Trump Administration cuts to science. The cuts to agencies affect science at every level. Science funding has been slashed at EPA, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Health and Human Services (HHS), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). And these cuts have implications for, among other things, clean air and water, protection from wildfires, cures for diseases ranging from Alzheimer’s to childhood cancer, monitoring and protection from lead […]
Posted in Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Interior, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Resistance, Uncategorized, US Department of Agriculture (USDA) | No Comments »
24
Mar
(Beyond Pesticides, March 24, 2025) In establishing the Make America Healthy Again Commission in February, the President tapped Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to chair the interagency panel. The stated goal, as described in the founding proclamation, is “drastically lowering chronic disease rates and ending childhood chronic disease.” The commission document states, “Overall, the global comparison data demonstrates that the health of Americans is on an alarming trajectory that requires immediate action.” In this context, on March 10, Secretary Kennedy directed Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Acting Commissioner Sara Brenner, MD to take steps to explore potential rulemaking to revise its Substances Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) Final Rule and related guidance to eliminate the self-affirmed GRAS pathway—allowing the food and chemical industry to assign GRAS status to food ingredients without oversight. This “pathway” to allowing food additives has long been recognized as a loophole that allows unidentified and potentially harmful additives in food, including by the 2010 U.S. General Accountability Office (GAO) report, Food Safety: FDA Should Strengthen Its Oversight of Food Ingredients Determined to Be Generally Recognized as Safety. Beyond Pesticides launched an effort this week to tell FDA to eliminate the self-affirmed […]
Posted in Children, Department of Health and Human Services, Disease/Health Effects, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Take Action, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
