House bill would bolster health tracking on Gulf Coast

House Democrats on Thursday will mark up legislation to track the health of those exposed to oil and chemicals along the Gulf Coast.

The bill is designed to tackle concerns that exposure to the oil, gas and chemical dispersants surrounding the Deepwater Horizon disaster could lead to long-term illnesses.

A 1980 law — known as the Superfund — empowers the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to monitor and record the health of people exposed to hazardous materials. But the law doesn't consider either oil or natural gas to fit into that category.

The new proposal — being crafted by leading Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee — would require the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to track and register the health of clean-up workers and local residents affected by spill, according to a draft. The leak continues to spew tens of thousands of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico each day.

The Democrats’ bill would allow HHS officials to tap their newly-created health registry for purposes of identifying and diagnosing the possible adverse health effects associated with long-term exposure to gas and petroleum. The idea is to prevent such ailments when the next oil spill comes along.

The legislation includes $21 million to launch the registry in 2011, with an additional $4 million each year through 2015.

The bill would also direct money toward the counseling and treatment of mental health problems associated with the spill.

Thursday's markup will take place in the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee, headed by Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (D-N.J.).

This builds off of an earlier post, updated at 2:38 p.m. and again at 7:30 p.m.