KEY: stricken = old language to be removed
     underscored = new language to be added

H.R. No. 22, as introduced: 82nd Legislative Session (2001-2002) Posted on February 4, 2002

02-5257   
  1.1                          A house resolution 
  1.2             designating the week of October 6 to 12, 2002, as 
  1.3             "Latex Allergy Awareness Week" in Minnesota. 
  1.4      
  1.5      WHEREAS, in 1997, after receiving over 1,700 reports of 
  1.6   latex allergy reactions, the United States Food and Drug 
  1.7   Administration ordered that any medical device containing latex 
  1.8   carry a cautionary label about potential allergic reactions; and 
  1.9      WHEREAS, the National Institute of Occupational Safety and 
  1.10  Health issued an alert in June 1997 requesting assistance in 
  1.11  preventing allergic reactions to natural rubber latex among 
  1.12  workers who use gloves and other products containing natural 
  1.13  rubber latex; and 
  1.14     WHEREAS, the Food and Drug Administration issued final 
  1.15  rules that went into effect September 30, 1998, requiring 
  1.16  labeling statements concerning the presence of natural rubber 
  1.17  latex in medical devices, including device packaging containing 
  1.18  natural rubber that contacts humans; and 
  1.19     WHEREAS, as of March 1999, the total number of latex 
  1.20  allergy reactions associated with latex-containing medical 
  1.21  gloves reported to the Food and Drug Administration was 2,330, 
  1.22  including five deaths; and 
  1.23     WHEREAS, latex gloves have been used as a tool in the 
  1.24  health care industry by health care workers to prevent the 
  2.1   transmission of many infectious diseases; and 
  2.2      WHEREAS, latex is used in emergency equipment, personal 
  2.3   protective equipment, and office, hospital, and household 
  2.4   supplies; and 
  2.5      WHEREAS, latex is also used in other industries, such as 
  2.6   child care, food service, and food processing; and 
  2.7      WHEREAS, with its growing use, there is more awareness that 
  2.8   latex and latex-containing products may trigger an allergic 
  2.9   reaction; and 
  2.10     WHEREAS, latex allergy is due to numerous allergenic 
  2.11  proteins derived from natural rubber latex; and 
  2.12     WHEREAS, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration 
  2.13  published a technical information bulletin in April 1999, 
  2.14  alerting field personnel to the potential allergic reactions in 
  2.15  some individuals using natural rubber latex products.  Such 
  2.16  reactions to latex may include skin rashes, hives, itching, 
  2.17  swollen red skin, swollen lips and tongue, shortness of breath, 
  2.18  dizziness, fainting, eye or sinus symptoms, asthma and, on rare 
  2.19  occasions, shock; and 
  2.20     WHEREAS, recent reports in scientific literature indicate 
  2.21  that from about one to six percent of the general population and 
  2.22  about eight to 12 percent of regularly exposed health care 
  2.23  workers are sensitized to natural rubber latex; and 
  2.24     WHEREAS, the number of health care workers and others 
  2.25  affected will continue to increase because frequent exposure to 
  2.26  latex causes the development of the allergy; and 
  2.27     WHEREAS, children with spina bifida and others who have 
  2.28  conditions involving multiple surgical procedures are at a 
  2.29  greater risk to an allergic reaction to latex due to the need 
  2.30  for multiple surgeries; and 
  2.31     WHEREAS, the American College of Allergy, Asthma and 
  2.32  Immunology estimates that 18 million Americans, 64 out of every 
  2.33  1,000, are allergic to latex, including 40 to 65 percent of 
  2.34  children with spina bifida; and 
  2.35     WHEREAS, various support groups across the country have 
  2.36  come together to increase public awareness of latex allergies 
  3.1   and encourage the endorsement of such efforts across the nation; 
  3.2   and 
  3.3      WHEREAS, the need to protect the residents, including 
  3.4   health care workers, of Minnesota against latex allergies is a 
  3.5   public health issue, and awareness of the public health threat 
  3.6   through education is the key to prevention of latex allergic 
  3.7   reactions; NOW, THEREFORE, 
  3.8      BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the State 
  3.9   of Minnesota that it designates the week of October 6 to 12, 
  3.10  2002, as "Latex Allergy Awareness Week" in an effort to urge all 
  3.11  Minnesotans to become educated about latex allergies.