HOUSE AMENDED
PRIOR PRINTER'S NOS. 1537, 1865, 1913 PRINTER'S NO. 2209
No. 1159 Session of 1983
INTRODUCED BY SHAFFER, PECORA, REIBMAN, HELFRICK, ANDREZESKI,
STAPLETON, O'CONNELL AND SHUMAKER, NOVEMBER 30, 1983
AS REPORTED FROM COMMITTEE ON FEDERAL-STATE RELATIONS, HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES, AS AMENDED, JUNE 27, 1984
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of April 29, 1982 (P.L.355, No.99), entitled
2 "An act establishing a Vietnam Herbicides Information
3 Commission; imposing powers and duties on the commission;
4 granting additional powers and duties to the Department of
5 Health and making an appropriation," designating dioxin as a
6 specific herbicide to be studied by the commission; extending
7 the life of the commission; extending the deadline for making
8 its final report; empowering the commission to initiate an
9 epidemiological study; revising content requirements of
10 report forms; and making an editorial change.
11 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
12 hereby enacts as follows:
13 Section 1. Sections 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 12 of the act
14 of April 29, 1982 (P.L.355, No.99), known as the Vietnam
15 Herbicides Information Act, are reenacted and amended to read:
16 Section 2. Definitions.
17 The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
18 have, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the
19 meanings given to them in this section:
20 "Agent Orange." The herbicide composed of [tri-chlorphenoxy
1 acitic] trichlorophenoxyacetic acid and [di-chlorphenoxyacitic]
2 dichorophenoxyacetic acid and the contaminant dioxin (TCDD).
3 "Commission." The Vietnam Herbicides Information Commission
4 established pursuant to section 3.
5 "Department." The Department of Health of the Commonwealth
6 of Pennsylvania.
7 "Secretary." The Secretary of Health of the Commonwealth of
8 Pennsylvania.
9 "Veteran." A person who was a resident of the Commonwealth
10 at the time of his induction into the Armed Forces of the United
11 States of America or is a resident of this Commonwealth who
12 served in the armed forces during the years 1961-1972.
13 "Vietnam herbicide." The herbicides, defoliants and other
14 causative agents containing dioxin, including Agent Orange, used
15 in the Vietnam Conflict.
16 Section 3. The Vietnam Herbicides Information Commission.
17 (a) There is hereby created within the Department of Health
18 an advisory commission to be known as the Vietnam Herbicides
19 Information Commission. This commission on Vietnam herbicides
20 exposure is to obtain information relating to the health effects
21 of exposure to herbicides containing dioxin and other causative
22 agents for Vietnam veteran residents of the [State] Commonwealth
23 of Pennsylvania who may have been exposed to these substances
24 during their period of military service.
25 (b) The commission shall consist of 15 members who shall
26 serve for [a term of two years] AN INITIAL TERM ENDING JUNE 30, <--
27 1985. The Governor shall appoint the Secretary of Health, the
28 Adjutant General of the Department of Military Affairs, the
29 Chairman of the State Veterans Commission, the President of the
30 Pennsylvania War Veterans Council and nine other members of whom
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1 five shall be honorably discharged veterans of the Vietnam
2 Conflict with at least one veteran selected from each of the
3 five areas covered by the Governor's Veterans Outreach Centers;
4 of the remaining members to be appointed by the Governor, one
5 shall be an epidemiologist selected from the State public health
6 and medical schools, one shall be a health environmentalist
7 selected from the State public health and medical schools and
8 one shall be a toxicologist selected from the State public
9 health and medical schools and one shall be a specialist in
10 public health selected from the State public health and medical
11 schools. The Speaker of the House of Representatives shall
12 appoint one member of the House to the commission. The President
13 pro tempore of the Senate shall appoint one member of the Senate
14 to the commission.
15 (c) The commission shall be chaired by the Secretary of the
16 Department of Health.
17 (d) Vacancies in the membership of the commission and its
18 officers shall be filled for the unexpired term in the same
19 manner as the original appointment or election.
20 (e) The commission shall meet at least four times each year
21 at the call of the chairperson. The initial meeting of the
22 commission shall be called by the Secretary of Health not later
23 than July 1, 1982.
24 (f) The commission shall be established [for a period of two
25 years] until April 30, 1987 AND CONTINUE IN EXISTENCE UNTIL JUNE <--
26 30, 1985.
27 (g) The members of the commission shall receive no
28 compensation for their services but shall be allowed their
29 actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of
30 their duties hereunder.
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1 Section 4. Powers and duties of the commission.
2 The commission shall have the following powers and duties:
3 (1) Determine what medical, administrative and social
4 assistance is needed for veterans who were exposed to Vietnam
5 herbicides and submit its recommendations to the Legislature
6 for its consideration.
7 (2) Conduct an extensive outreach program which would
8 coordinate and supplement the outreach efforts of the
9 Department of Military Affairs, the State Veterans
10 Commission, the Pennsylvania War Veterans Council, county
11 directors of veterans affairs, the Governor's Outreach and
12 Assistance Centers and other organizations to inform veterans
13 who may have been exposed to herbicides containing dioxin of
14 any Federal or State assistance available to them.
15 (3) Act as the official agent of the State for
16 disseminating information to veterans about epidemiological
17 or other studies relating to Vietnam herbicides exposure
18 which are being conducted by the Federal or State Government.
19 Section 5. Cooperation with other agencies.
20 To the maximum extent feasible, the commission shall be
21 entitled to request and receive and shall utilize and be
22 provided with such facilities, resources and data of any court,
23 department, division, board, bureau, commission or agency of the
24 [State] Commonwealth or any political subdivision thereof as it
25 may reasonably request to carry out properly its powers and
26 duties hereunder.
27 Section 6. Information to be confidential.
28 The commission shall not disclose information received
29 pursuant to this act so as to divulge the identities of the
30 persons to whom it relates except as is necessary to carry out
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1 the purposes of this act.
2 Section 7. Reports.
3 The commission shall make a preliminary report to the
4 Governor and the Legislature of its findings, conclusions and
5 recommendations not later than November 30, 1982 and a final
6 report of its findings, conclusions and recommendations not
7 later than [June 30, 1983] April 30, 1987 JUNE 30, 1985. <--
8 Section 8. Duties of the Department of Health.
9 For the purpose of identifying persons who were exposed to
10 Vietnam herbicides and for the purpose of compiling data on the
11 health effects of this exposure, the department shall:
12 (1) Establish, promote and maintain a public information
13 program on Vietnam herbicides. Such program shall be
14 coordinated with the Department of Military Affairs and the
15 Governor's Outreach and Assistance Centers and shall include,
16 but may not be limited to, assistance in the commission's
17 efforts to contact veterans who were exposed to the herbicide
18 containing dioxin.
19 (2) Establish, maintain and promote a reporting process
20 for veterans who were exposed to herbicides, defoliants and
21 other causative agents, including Agent Orange.
22 (3) Maintain a central data bank within the department
23 for information collected on the health effects of exposure
24 to Vietnam herbicides and for the cataloguing of existing
25 scientific and medical literature on the health effects of
26 this exposure.
27 (4) Initiate education for health professionals to
28 assist them in understanding the potential risks and state-
29 of-art knowledge with regard to detection, diagnosis and
30 treatment of acute and chronic symptoms associated with
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1 Vietnam herbicides exposure. The education component should
2 utilize existing resources, such as the informational films
3 prepared by the Veterans Administration, whenever possible.
4 (5) Initiate an epidemiological study or studies of the
5 health effects of exposure to herbicides, defoliants and
6 other causative agents, including Agent Orange.
7 Section 9. Reports to the department.
8 (a) A physician who has primary responsibility for treating
9 a veteran who believes he may have been exposed to chemical
10 herbicides or defoliants, including Agent Orange, while serving
11 in the Armed Forces of the United States, shall, at the request
12 of the veteran, submit a report to the department on a form
13 provided by the department. If there is no physician having
14 primary responsibility for treating the veteran, the hospital
15 treating the veteran shall, at the request of the veteran,
16 submit the report to the department.
17 (b) The form provided by the department to the physician
18 shall be similar in content to the forms being used by the
19 Veterans Administration in their Agent Orange Registry Program
20 and shall request the following information:
21 (1) Symptoms of the veteran.
22 (2) Diagnosis of the veteran.
23 (3) Methods of treatment prescribed.
24 [(4) Dates of military service in Vietnam and the
25 locations in Vietnam where the veteran served.]
26 (c) The department may require the veteran to provide such
27 other information as determined by the secretary of the
28 department.
29 Section 12. Report by department.
30 The department shall make an annual report to the Legislature
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1 of its findings and recommendations concerning the
2 effectiveness, impact and benefits derived from the special
3 policies as provided for in this act. Such report shall be
4 delivered on or before March 1 and shall contain evaluations of
5 the policies and any legislation deemed necessary and proper to
6 the House Federal-State Relations [Committee] and Military and
7 Veterans Affairs Committees and the Senate Military and Veterans
8 Affairs Committee.
9 Section 2. The act of April 29, 1982 (P.L.355, No.99), known
10 as the Vietnam Herbicides Information Act, and the commission
11 established thereby shall terminate on April 30, 1987 JUNE 30, <--
12 1985.
13 Section 3. This act shall take effect immediately and shall
14 be retroactive to April 30 29, 1984. <--
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