Depleted Uranium Screening and Testing Act - Directs the Secretary of Defense to: (1) establish procedures for the predeployment notification to members of the Armed Forces of any known or likely use of depleted uranium in a theater of operations and any health risks associated with exposure to depleted uranium; (2) provide for training deploying members on the safe handling of depleted uranium contamination; (3) carry out a program to identify individuals exposed to depleted uranium during active service in the Armed Forces; (4) provide such individuals with bioassay testing and notification of test results; and (5) identify specified depleted uranium exposure events.
Requires the Secretary of each military department to establish procedures for collecting, tracking, and maintaining information on the health status of individuals tested under this Act to assess long-term health consequences of exposure to depleted uranium.
Requires the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to conduct an independent review of bioassay types and contamination thresholds for purposes of required testing.
Requires the Secretary of the military department concerned to provide appropriate treatment for any illness of an individual resulting from depleted uranium contamination or exposure.
Directs the Comptroller General to conduct a survey of radioisotope identification equipment used by the Department of Defense (DOD) to assess the capability of DOD facilities to identify concentrations of different radioisotopes in naturally occurring levels of uranium and to report survey findings to Congress.
[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 248 Introduced in House (IH)]
112th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 248
To provide for identification of members of the Armed Forces exposed
during military service to depleted uranium, to provide for health
testing of such members, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 7, 2011
Mr. Serrano introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Armed Services
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for identification of members of the Armed Forces exposed
during military service to depleted uranium, to provide for health
testing of such members, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Depleted Uranium Screening and
Testing Act''.
SEC. 2. DEPLETED URANIUM RISK NOTIFICATION FOR DEPLOYING FORCES.
(a) Notification.--The Secretary of Defense shall establish
procedures to require, as part of the procedures for preparing members
of the Armed Forces for deployment to a theater of operations, that
such members be notified of--
(1) any known or likely use of depleted uranium in that
theater of operations (whether by forces of the United States
and its allies or by any opposing forces); and
(2) any health risks associated with exposure to depleted
uranium.
(b) Training.--The Secretary shall provide for training deploying
members of the Armed Forces on the safe handling of depleted uranium
contamination before such members are deployed to a theater in which
depleted uranium is used.
SEC. 3. DEPLETED URANIUM SCREENING AND TESTING.
(a) Identification and Testing Required.--The Secretary of Defense
shall carry out a program to identify individuals who, during active
service in the Armed Forces, are or have been exposed to depleted
uranium and to provide those individuals with bioassay testing and
notification of the results of such testing.
(b) Depleted Uranium-Exposed Personnel Identification Methods.--
(1) Procedures for identification of exposed members.--The
Secretary of each military department shall establish
procedures to identify members of the Armed Forces under the
Secretary's jurisdiction who are, or may have been, exposed to
depleted uranium. For such purpose, the Secretary shall
identify units and members under paragraph (2) and shall accept
self-identification reports by members under paragraph (3).
(2) Identification of units and personnel.--The Secretary
of each military department shall identify units, and personnel
assigned to units, that have been, or could have been, exposed
to depleted uranium, based upon information about known
exposure events (as determined under subsection (c)).
(3) Self reporting.--The Secretary of each military
department shall accept a report by an individual, or a primary
care provider for an individual, that the individual, while a
member of the Armed Forces under the Secretary's jurisdiction,
was, or may have been, exposed to depleted uranium based upon
service on active duty (or training duty or funeral honors
duty) in a theater of operations where depleted uranium was
used, including travel through such an area. The Secretary
shall prescribe procedures for receiving such reports. Such a
self-identification report submitted to the Secretary under
this paragraph shall be treated by the Secretary as
identification of the individual for purposes of this
subsection.
(4) Treatment of individuals no longer on active duty.--In
carrying out this subsection, the Secretary of each military
department shall ensure that individuals no longer on active
duty (including members of the reserve components who have been
released from active duty, members who have been retired, and
members who have been separated from service) are treated, for
identification purposes, in the same manner as individuals
remaining on active duty.
(c) Exposure Events.--
(1) Types of events.--The Secretary of Defense shall
identify depleted uranium exposure events for purposes of this
section. The exposure events identified shall include the
following:
(A) Direct exposures.--An event in which an
individual--
(i) is struck by depleted uranium munitions
or depleted uranium armor fragments;
(ii) enters, or is present within 50 meters
of, a vehicle or structure with possible
depleted uranium residues; or
(iii) breathes smoke from fires involving
depleted uranium materials.
(B) Equipment handling exposures.--An event in
which an individual may inhale depleted uranium
compound particulates as a result of the handling of
equipment or wreckage that has been, or could have
been, contaminated with depleted uranium.
(C) Other exposures.--Other significant or
incidental exposure events identified by the Secretary,
including the performance of activities in the area of
depleted uranium damaged vehicles or structures or the
traveling through or residing in any such area.
(2) Limited retroactivity.--In addition to exposure events
described in paragraph (1) occurring on or after the date of
the enactment of this Act, such events during the period
between January 1, 2003, and the date of the enactment of this
Act may be considered for purposes of this section, if reported
during the 60-day period beginning on the date of the enactment
of this Act.
(d) Health-Care Services Required.--
(1) Bioassay procedure.--Any individual identified under
subsection (b) shall be provided a health screening test by the
Secretary of Defense. Such test shall be carried out using a
bioassay procedure developed by the Secretary of Defense in
consultation with the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention. The same bioassay procedure shall be used for all
individuals identified under subsection (b) and for all types
of exposure or possible exposure identified under subsection
(c).
(2) Time for test.--
(A) Exposures after enactment.--In the case of an
exposure event described in subsection (c) that occurs
on or after the date of the enactment of this Act, the
bioassay under paragraph (1) shall be administered not
later than 180 days after the date of the event, except
that in the case of an individual with an exposure
event described in subsection (c)(3), the bioassay
under paragraph (1) shall be administered not later
than 30 days after the end of the individual's
deployment in the theater of operations, but such
individual may be provided the bioassay earlier upon
the individual's request.
(B) Exposures before enactment.--In the case of an
exposure event described in subsection (c) that occurs
before the date of the enactment of this Act, the
bioassay under paragraph (1) shall be administered not
later than 180 days after the date of the reporting of
the event under subsection (c)(2).
(3) Furnishing of results.--The Secretary of Defense shall
provide the results of any bioassay procedure under this
subsection to the individual tested, and the primary care
manager or primary care provider of that individual, not later
than 30 days after the Secretary receives those results.
(e) Personnel Tracking.--The Secretary of each military department
shall establish procedures for collecting, tracking, and maintaining
information on the health status of individuals tested under subsection
(d) for the purpose of assessing any long-term health consequences of
exposure to depleted uranium.
(f) Independent Review of Bioassay Types and Contamination
Thresholds.--The Director of the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention shall conduct an independent review of bioassay types and
contamination thresholds for purposes of the testing under subsection
(d).
(g) Treatment.--Based on the results of the bioassay tests, the
Secretary of the military department concerned shall provide
appropriate treatment for any illness of an individual resulting from a
depleted uranium contamination or exposure.
SEC. 4. COMPTROLLER GENERAL SURVEY AND REPORT ON RADIOISOTOPE
IDENTIFICATION EQUIPMENT USED BY DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE.
(a) Survey.--The Comptroller General shall conduct a survey of
radioisotope identification equipment used by the Department of Defense
in order to assess the capability of Department of Defense facilities
to identify concentrations of different radioisotopes in naturally
occurring levels of uranium.
(b) Report.--The Comptroller General shall submit to Congress a
report on the results of the survey under subsection (a) not later than
180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.
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