NAS Committee report on agent orange : hearing before the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, United States Senate, One Hundred Third Congress, first session, July 27, 1993

United States. Congress. Senate. Committee On Veterans' Affairs

Sujets

• Veteran
• Agent orange

Informations

• Publié par: les_archives_du_savoir
• Nombre de lectures: 19
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 10 Mo

Extrait

S. HRG. 103-302
NAS COMMITTEE REPORT ON AGENT ORANGE
Y 4. V 64/4: S. HRG. 103-302
NAS Connittee Report on Agent Drang...
HEARING
BEFORE THE
COMMITTEE ON VETERANS' AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED THIRD CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
JULY 199327,
Printed for the use of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
73-930 CC WASHINGTON : 1993
For sale by the U.S. Government Printing Office
Superintendent of Documents, Congressional Sales Office, Washington. DC 20402
0-16-043285-5ISBNS. HRG. 103-302
REPORT ON AGENT ORANGENAS COMMITTEE
r
4. V 64/4: S. HRG, 103-302
*S Connittee Report on Agent Drang...
HEARING
BEFORE THE
COMMITTEE ON VETERANS AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED THIRD CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
JULY 27, 1993
Committee on Veterans' AffairsPrinted for the use of the
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
73-930 CC WASHINGTON : 1993
U.S. Government Printing OfficeFor sale by the
20402Documents. Congressional Sales Office. Washington. DCSuperintendent of
0-16-043285-5ISBNAFFAIRSCOMMITTEE ON VETERANS'
IV, West Virginia, ChairmanJOHN D. ROCKEFELLER
MURKOWSKI, AlaskaDECONCINI, Arizona FRANK H.DENNIS
STROM THURMOND, South CarolinaJ. MITCHELL, MaineGEORGE
ALAN K SIMPSON, WyomingBOB GRAHAM, Florida
SPECTER, PennsylvaniaAKAKA, Hawaii ARLENDANIEL K
JEFFORDS, VermontTHOMAS A. DASCHLE, South Dakota JAMES M.
BEN NIGHTHORSE CAMPBELL, Colorado
Counsel DirectorJIM GOTTLIEB, Chief /Staff
Minority Chief Counsel/Staff DirectorJOHN H. MOSEMAN,
(II)CONTENTS
JULY 27, 1993
Page
NAS Committee Report on Agent Orange 1
STATEMENTS BY COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Chairman John D. Rockefeller IV 1
Prepared statement ofChairman Rockefeller 23
Senator Daniel K. Akaka 6 ofSenator Akaka 24
Senator Thomas A. Daschle 2
Prepared statement ofSenator Daschle 23
Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell 7 ofSenator Campbell 25
WITNESSES
Brown, Hon. Jesse, Secretary of Veterans Affairs, accompanied by Mary Lou
Keener, General Counsel; John Thompson, Assistant General Counsel; R.J.
Vogel, Deputy Under Secretary for Benefits; J. Gary Hickman, Director,
Compensation and Pension Service; and Dr. Susan Mather, Assistant Chief
Medical Director, Environmental Medicine and Public Health 11
Prepared statement of Secretary Brown „ 28
Shine, Dr. Kenneth I., President, Institute of Medicine, National Academy
of Sciences and Dr. Harold Fallon, Chairman, Institute of Medicine's Com-
mittee to Review the Health Effects in Vietnam Veterans of Exposure
to Herbicides, accompanied by Dr. David Tollerud, Vice Chairman, IOM
Committee; Dr. David Kreibel, Dr. Kathy Rodgers, and Dr. Jesse Berlin,
IOM Committee members 4
Prepared statement of Dr. Shine 25 of Dr. Fallon 26
APPENDDC
StaffForum on Future Research on Agent Orange 35
Albanese, Dr. Richard A., Chief, Mathematical Products Division, Arm-
strong Laboratory, Brooks Air Force Base 41
Prepared statement of Dr. Richard Albanese 117
Christian, Richard S., Deputy Director for Research and Technology As-
sessment, National Veterans Affairs and Rehabilitation Commission,
The American Legion 209
Daschle, Senator Thomas A 35
Prepared statement ofSenator Daschle 84
Egan, Paul S., Executive Director, Vietnam Veterans ofAmerica 213
Kahn, Dr. Peter C, Associate Professor of Biochemistry, Department
of Biochemistry and Microbiology, Rutgers University 42
Prepared statement of Dr. Kahn 120
Schecter, Dr. Arnold, Professor of Preventive Medicine, Health Science
Center, State University ofNew York at Binghamton 45
Prepared statement of Dr. Schecter 123
Silbergeld, Dr. Ellen K., Senior Toxicologist, Environmental Defense
Fund, Professor of Epidemiology and Toxicology, University of Mary-
land School ofMedicine 48
Prepared statement of Dr. Silbergeld 165
(III)IV
Page
Stellman, Dr. Jeanne, Associate Professor of Public Health, Columbia
University 51
Prepared statement of Dr. Stellman 178
Tolleruct, Dr. David, Vice Chairman, Committee to Review the Health
Effects in Vietnam Veterans of Exposure to Herbicides, National Acad-
emy of Sciences, and Director of Occupational and Environmental Med-
icine, University of Pittsburgh 38
Prepared statement of Dr. Tollerud 85
Zumwalt, E.R., Jr., Admiral, U.S. Navy (Ret.) 225
Written questions and the responses:
Chairman Rockefeller to:
Department ofVeterans Affairs 29
NAS Committee to Review the Health Effects in Vietnam Veterans
of Herbicides 31NAS COMMITTEE REPORT ON AGENT
ORANGE
TUESDAY, JULY 27, 1993
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Veterans' Affairs,
Washington, DC.
The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 11:18 a.m., in room
DG-50, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. John D. Rockefeller
IV (Chairman ofthe Committee) presiding.
Present: Senators Rockefeller, Akaka, Daschle, and Campbell.
OPENING STATEMENT OFCHAIRMANROCKEFELLER
Chairman Rockefeller. I apologize theto witnesses and to all.
To our Secretary, I apologize for our delay in getting started. We
had series of four or five they alljust a votes, and fell one right
after the other.
I'm afraid also, since this is a day of conferences all over this
building, that the rest of the hearing may also be thrown into some
form of turmoil. We have an extremely important meeting about
the deficit reduction bill today from 12:15 p.m. to 2:15 p.m., which
Senator Daschle is to chair, so to speak. I've consulted with Sen-
ator Daschle and other Members of the Committee about how to
accommodate Senators' schedules and the availability of our wit-
nesses. This is very difficult and awkward, so we've decided to pro-
ceed in the following manner:
Following our opening statements, we'll hear the testimony ofthe
National Academy of Sciences, and then we'll proceed directly to
Secretary Jesse Brown's prepared statement. Following that, we'll
go back to NAS for some questions. We'll suspend the hearing at
12:15 p.m. We will then pick up at 2:15 p.m. where we left off, with
questions to both NAS, if we're not finished with them, and to the
Secretary—that is, depending on whether or not the Secretary can
be here. I simply don't know, and I apologize again theto Sec-
retary. I expect the hearing to conclude sometime before 4 p.m. I'm
sorry that we have to do it this way, these are crazybut days.
I thank the witnesses, I thank the Ipress, thank all who are
here today for their patience and for their understanding.
Now, I welcome you to this hearing. This is a red-letter day in
the effort to resolve the Agent Orange issue. willWe focus on a re-
port released this morning theby National Academy of Sciences.
For the first time, an independent review of the scientific evidence
shows that there is cleara association between Agent Orange expo-
sure and five diseases. It further shows that there is a likely rela-
tionship between exposure and several additional Finally,diseases.
(1)the report indicates that for numerous other conditions, including
and neurological effects, there is inadequate informa-reproductive
conclude a definite association—that is to say, there may betion to
association, but we simply do not have complete information.an
are incredibly important findings. Contrary to what theThese
Government has said over the years, the report also sug-Federal
that further epidemiological studies are possible and shouldgests
now. This is enormously encouraging.be done, and done
an 18-month review under the Agent Orange ActNAS conducted
1991 I'll have something to say about one of its authors inof —and
originated in our Committee. The report isa moment—a law that
well balanced, the report is scientifically im-thorough, the report is
of in Congress andpressive. It will be extremely useful to those us
to the VA.
I thinkThis has been a very emotional subject for a long time.
we have hope now that the mystery surrounding Agent Orange can
September,indeed be solved. I plan to hold a followup hearing in
veryafter those interested in this issue have had a chance to care-
fully review the NAS report.
that isNow I come to what I feel just as good about, and to say
have looked forwardthat I choose to, want to, am proud to, and
Tom Daschle ofto passing the gavel on this day to my colleague,
this isSouth Dakota, for this hearing. This is a symbolic act, a sub-
stantive act, this is a deserved act; this is an act of great emotional
importance, I think, to both of us.
Since his day as a Member of the House, Tom has been the
issue of Agent Orange. He was onestrong national leader on the
law that made this report possible, theof the key authors of the
tirelessly, fervently, andAgent Orange Act of 1991. He has worked
that adds the extrawith the professional and service background
is needed in Congress todimension of tenacity and ferocity that
seen with oth-drive things through. His experience, what he has
Tom Daschleers, and what he feels in his own soul, are what drive
fair play andon this subject, as well as his sense of justice and
doing what is right.
Tom, I thank you for your tireless work in this area, for your
overwhelming contribution in getting us to this point. Our Nation's
appreciate your leadership and I know they are better offveterans