Hey everybody. It's Bill Couzens. We are at the National Cancer Prevention workshop today we're going to welcome Representatives Debbie Dingell and Fred Upton, both from Michigan. And both sponsors for National Cancer Prevention Day, the National Cancer Prevention Workshop and the United States bipartisan Cancer prevention Caucus. And I just want to say when they initiated that, everybody meets for that caucus and it seems a little crazy at first, but I get so much mail from people that are grateful that you both show up and you're part of the process. So, many people with sick families, sick Children, they're really, really grateful. And I just want to thank you for putting yourselves out there in that way. You've been instrumental in saving lives and we're very grateful. So, the reason we wanted to talk to you today is that you're both sponsors of the legislation for p fast to clean up the Great Light up the Great Lakes. And I was hoping you could tell us a little bit about it. I was wondering if we could start out by defining what P fast is, the impact on communities and some of the negative impacts of those chemicals. If we could just start the discussion there. >> Fred you're my senior. >> Well. >> It's older than I am, but barely. >> Barely. I got my hair cut. So, even look younger today. Well, Bill, first of all, it's a delight to be with the cancer is important. Not only did the two of us, but really the whole Congress. So, we've seen this bipartisan effort for a long time, maybe more than just about any other. I mean quite frankly, tell me a family that hasn't been impacted by a death of of some type of cancer. There are none. I mean, absolutely none. And which is tragic, but I got to tell you a few a few years ago, most people, most members of Congress, including me, never even heard of the term P fast. And it was something that tragically we found in our backyard in Michigan in a lot of different places that was literally thousands of times higher than the accepted level. Found out that EPA didn't even actually have a level, which is one of the reasons why Debby and I joined together to try and pride he created tell us what the standard ought to be. And sadly, particularly around military bases, we saw P fast because it's in the foam, the firefighting foam and thus used for training at all these different airports, particularly military installations. It would get into that groundwater and it would never come out. And then we found that it led to underweight babies, real cancer causing things. And for me, the real wake up call was when tragically we found an old paper company, I think that it closed down back, literally 50 years ago had contaminated the city municipal water wells. And I got off the plane going into the August break call from my sheriff and others saying Freddy, you won't believe what these P fast levels are. Can you help? And I said, we got to put out the word right away and I drove up outer edge in my district, not on the way home at all. I got in touch with the governor's office, put a command center. And literally that night we were going door to door with police, small community just outside of Kalamazoo. But literally with police cars, with speakers on top of the cars, don't drink the water, don't use it for your vegetables, don't use it for your eyes, for your coffee, for your infant formula. And for months, we literally had to pass out water. School and the church is for people bottled water, for folks to use until we could actually hook up, change the hook up from the city of parchment to the city of Kalamazoo could try and protect those folks. But, tragically this is an issue now that certainly we in Michigan know a lot about certainly our committee on a bipartisan basis and we have a caucus, but we've now passed legislation in the house. Hopefully the Senate can come along, we know that if we can get it to the president's desk, he is likely to sign. >> Great news. I'm sorry, we have to go through this, but I'm grateful to both you and Debbie for your leadership. This is and not only working together, but I believe this is really one of the most important solutions for cancer prevention. And I love that you both have been able to work together to do this extraordinary thing and help with this. Did you want to add anything to that Debbie? >> Let's just build on what Fred has said, first of all again, Bill, thank you for all the work that you do. And I'm always glad to do things with Fred because we do work together very closely on many, many things that impact people P fast. Doesn't look at someone and think the Republican or Democrat actually, doesn't look at anybody and we need to, P fast is a crisis in this country. And too many people don't know it. P fast is a man made chemical, came out of the Manhattan project. And it's called a forever chemical. You can't get rid of it. We cannot. And that's what's so scary, 98% of us have some level of P fast in our blood. It's in more than 2000 communities in our state in Michigan. It's been found in 100 communities. And Fred was talking about the drinking water standard. Every year we keep saying, when are you going to set the drinking water standard? And they keep saying that it's going to come and actually a Republican governor in our state rick Snyder, we take water seriously in Michigan. Appointed a P fast scientific advisory committee and the findings that we made and they set a drinking water standard for Michigan is actually more stringent than the guideline that EPA currently has for PFS in your drinking water. 200 million Americans probably are drinking water right now with the P fast in it. And as Fred said, we know that it has harmful impact, we know that it can cause cancer in people. And that's why we did get the P fast action bill through the house. We got, it was a bipartisan bill, which is wonderful when those things happen. And I would say to people who are listening to us today. P fast is in so many things that you don't even think about. It is, I'm a lousy cook. I needed Teflon pans. Teflon pans had p fast in it, P fast is in our makeup. There's been a new study this year warning us. It's in many kinds of makeup. But I went and looked at my makeup. It's not labeled anywhere. It's in food storage containers that you get from a restaurant when you're picking up the food. How many of us have done that during pandemic. It's in our socks. So, we are working very hard to educate people where P fast is as well, that's why Fred and I are working so closely on P fast Action Act. But other bills because this is a forever chemical that is in too many places and we haven't begun the cleanup of it and we need to prevent it from being used by in many products that we're using. >> Let me just ask you this because yeah, this is definitely a pandemic. How are you and Fred working together really in Michigan too, because you're so ahead of the curve of everybody on this issue. Tell them, do you have anything you can share with us about the way you're working together on this? >> A lot of it is awareness. And again, just a few years ago and I would bet that if you did a poll today, most people majority folks wouldn't know what P fast is or even that it's harmful and can lead to cancer, etc. So, that's why we had a good vote in the house that sets the stage for the Senate. We're hoping that the test bill, when it gets done, we'll have resources for P fast because that cleanups got to start. But our governor a number of years ago, former now former governor Snyder actually required every municipal water supply. Even those under 10,000 residents had to check for P fast and that sent the word out. So, that's now. So, it's part of the Michigan equation, I guess you could say. And he told me and Debbie is as aware of that, he told other governors this is something you better get your hand on because if maybe you haven't heard of it now, this was to the National Governors Association. But I can assure you that down the road you are. So, it's one step at a time. >> Can you tell me about the types of cancers you're hearing about through these exposures and the risk to, >> I don't know the specific ones but we know that there are cancer causing and that's one of the reasons why we prodded the EPA to really help us. Not the scientists here but help us tell us what's the maximum that people can take and let's identify it and lets be able to get some of this stuff out of the waste stream where it gets into the groundwater supplies. >> Right. >> Bill, there have been studies that show the most common causes of cancer from P fast, our kidney and testicular. But more and more research is being done every day and they find out more and more. So, that's why we're working so hard to keep it out of products. And I mean think about it, P fast in the blood of 98% of the people in this country. You can't get rid of it. There's no way to get rid of it in your blood. >> And it's unnecessary and preventable. That's the thing that drives me crazy that there are ways that we can do this and certainly the two of you have done so. Robin Lod who's on our board here is the storyline in dark waters and he wrote the book exposure and his experience on P fast and that's how I first learned about it. But it's really amazing. And the fact that you've not only identified ways to get your arms around it, is incredible and could not be more grateful for you. Is there a strategy to clean this up? Is there a way of cleaning this up in the Great Lakes or is that possible? >> A couple of things. First of all we have to identify it. But in this smaller infrastructure building as we talk, there's a lot of debate that's going on right now in Washington for sure. There was a bipartisan infrastructure bill that was actually a direct result of the organization that Debbie and I both belonged to. That is called the problem solvers caucus. Nearly 60 members equally divided Republicans and Democrats have a good number here in Michigan Debbie and I have been, she might have been a member before I was, I'm on the Republican side. I'm one of the vice shares, but in fact in that blueprint that passed the Senate last August 69 to 30. It includes $10 billion for P fast clean up, another 15. Again, another issue sort of clues, not sort of, but close to our hearts in Michigan of course is the lead issue. Dating back to flint and now because we talked about in harbor but other other communities around the country as well, there's $15 billion in there for for lead line cleanup, 10 billion for P fast. I would consider a good start of where you want to go and hopefully we're going to get this bill to the president's desk pretty darn shoot soon. >> It's amazing how far you've come because I know and not so distant past. There were no solutions, there's nobody tackling this, there was nobody looking at this. And so, the two of you have been so critical in really advancing this. And I know many, many people are grateful I hear from them and appreciate your work. People often don't understand how public health works and they're just different tools than what we see in the hospital or in our doctor's office. And the fact that you have legislation and policies and best practices to try to get around this issue is amazing and so grateful. I don't want to keep each of you all day. I could talk to both of you all day, but I just wanted to thank you for your leadership for the National Cancer Prevention Workshop, National Cancer Prevention Day and the House Caucus on Cancer Prevention. You both are rock stars and your leadership is really critical today. Thanks thanks for all you all do. And, we'll do our best to have your back. Thanks everybody. Thanks very much. Advocate. Be the voice you want to change. Thanks Debbie for all you do. Thanks fred. Take care. Thank you for the time. Thank you. Right.
