Low-Dose Radiation Research Act of 2014

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5544) to increase the understanding of the health effects of low doses of ionizing radiation, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H.R. 5544, the bill now under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I rise here today to urge my colleagues to support H.R. 5544, the Low-Dose Radiation Research Act of 2014.

Humans are exposed on a daily basis to much natural background radiation, and some get additional low-dose exposure from medical procedures or from industrial radiation sources; yet sufficient data is not available for experts to definitively conclude whether there are health risks associated with low-dose radiation.

This lack of understanding prevents regulatory agencies from setting more precise radiation dose limits, as well as it impairs authorities' decisionmaking capabilities to address potential radiological events and advise patients for medically-based radiation exposures, all of which pose an unnecessary burden on society.

As a medical doctor, as a family doctor, and a true fiscal conservative, I recognize that this major gap in understanding is detrimental to the health and well-being of Americans and will additionally contribute to unnecessary economic burdens if we do not deal with it immediately.

This legislation seeks to address the limited understanding of potential health risks associated with low-dose radiation by leveraging the Nation's current expertise in low-dose radiation while proposing a long-term strategy to address the current gaps of knowledge in this area.

This legislation will be carried out using funds otherwise already appropriated by law and ensure that the Department of Energy is following congressional direction to focus its work on issues of long- term importance.

Passage of this legislation will help resolve what we do not know in the field of low-dose radiation for the betterment of medicine, for emergency response planning, and for industrial safety, not to speak about helping patients and Americans know what this all entails. This will show that we do not take for granted the livelihood of our fellow Americans.

This bill is a commonsense win, and I hope that all of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle will join me in supporting this legislation.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my good friend from Maryland (Ms. Edwards). I heard her comments, and they are very nice comments. She and I have been friends and sometimes on the opposite sides of issues, but she is a very dear friend and a great lady, and I appreciate her well wishes. I thank you very much. I appreciate that.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 5544, the Low-Dose Radiation Research Act of 2014, will increase our understanding of low-dose radiation. This research is critical for physicians and decision makers to more accurately assess potential health risks in this area.

I thank my friend, Chairman of the Oversight Subcommittee, Dr. Paul Broun, for introducing this legislation.

Many Americans are exposed to a broad range of low doses of ionizing radiation. These range from cosmic background radiation to medically based procedures, which include X-rays and CT scans.

However, our current approach to radiation safety relies on an outdated assumption that because high doses of radiation are harmful that much lower radiation doses are also harmful.

This assumption is not based on a reliable scientific foundation and prevents patients from making informed decisions about diagnostic exams and can lead to overly restrictive regulations.

The Department of Energy's (DOE) Low Dose Radiation Research Program within the Office of Science focuses on the health effects of ionizing radiation and resolving the uncertainties in this area that currently exist.

Unfortunately, this program has not been a priority at DOE over recent years and has seen systematic budget cuts.

H.R. 5544 ensures the continuance of this important research program.

This legislation also directs the National Academies to formulate a long-term strategy to resolve uncertainties of whether and to what extent low dose radiation may pose health risks to humans. The bill also stipulates that the Academies must consider the most up-to-date studies in this field of research.

And finally, the bill requires the Department of Energy to develop a five-year research plan that responds to the Academies' recommendations.

I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to discuss H.R. 5544, the Low-Dose Radiation Research Act of 2014. This bill authorizes an important research program carried out by the Department of Energy's Office of Science to examine the health impacts of exposure to low doses of radiation, such as doses resulting from certain medical tests, nuclear waste

cleanup activities, or even terrorism events like dirty bombs.

This bill builds on DOE's unique biological research expertise and capabilities, which actually led to the establishment of the successful Human Genome Project that paved the way toward breakthroughs in modern medicine today.

Mr. Speaker, the bill also authorizes a National Academies study to identify current scientific challenges in this area and to help guide the program's long-term research agenda well into the next decade.

In fact, Mr. Speaker, the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2014, cosponsored by every Democratic member of the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, includes very similar language to what we now see in H.R. 5544, so we have no objection to this bill and support its passage.

We also look forward to working with our colleagues on the other side of the aisle--and, of course, on the other side of the Capitol--on far more comprehensive, bipartisan legislation to reauthorize the America COMPETES Act, as is strongly recommended by many of the most respected industry and academic leaders and organizations across the country.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the gentleman from Georgia for his leadership and for his service in the Congress, and of course, we wish him well as that term comes to an end.

I yield back the balance of my time.