Durbin, Duckworth, Schneider Release Statement On CDC Report On Public Health Impact Of Sterigenics
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Environmental Justice Caucus, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), founder of the Senate Environmental Justice Caucus, and U.S. Representative Brad Schneider (D-IL-10), Co-Chair of the bipartisan Congressional Ethylene Oxide Task Force, today issued the following statement on the report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) evaluating the public health impacts of the ethylene oxide (EtO), a cancer-causing agent, emitted from the now-closed Sterigenics medical sterilization facility in Willowbrook, Illinois. The report, which was released today for public comment until January 3, analyzed EtO concentrations measured in Willowbrook from November 2018 to March 2019. In the report, ATSDR concluded that, prior to February 15, 2019, long-term breathing of air within one mile of the Sterigenics facility is a concern