Endocrine Insider
November 12, 2009

(See Full Issue)

At its Interim Meeting in Houston this week, the American Medical Association (AMA) House of Delegates (HOD) passed a resolution introduced by The Endocrine Society on the regulation of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs).  Society delegates Vineeth Mohan, MD, Susan Sherman, MD, and Robert Vigersky, MD, presented the Society’s resolution, which was co-sponsored by the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists and the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, with support from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Society for Occupational and Environmental Health, California Medical Association, and from the Endocrine, Subspecialty, and Young Physician Section Councils of the HOD.  Upon passing the resolution, the HOD established new AMA policy on EDC regulation, which states:

The AMA will work with the federal government to pursue the following tenets:

• Regulatory oversight of endocrine-disrupting chemicals should be centralized so that regulations pass through a single office to ensure coordination among agencies with the exception of pharmaceutical agents that are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration and are used for medicinal purposes;
  
• Policy should be based on comprehensive data covering both low-level and high-level exposures; and
   
• Policy should be developed and revised under the direction of a collaborative group comprising endocrinologists, toxicologists, occupational/environmental medicine specialists, epidemiologists and policymakers.

The adoption of these principles by the HOD represents a broad consensus among the entire medical community that more needs to be done to protect the public from potential health risks of exposure to EDCs.  As AMA policy, these tenets enjoy the full support of the House of Medicine.

Continued High-Profile Media Coverage
As part of his ongoing coverage of EDCs, Nicholas Kristof once again cited the Society’s scientific statement in his Sunday, November 8 New York Times column.  The statement presents an extensive literature review and recommendations for moving forward, which make it useful for scientists, physicians, policymakers, and the informed lay public.  Kristof has repeatedly acknowledged the scientific statement, having referred to it as a “landmark” document.  The ongoing media attention to the Society’s work on the science and policy of EDCs is a testament not only to the need for the Society’s expertise in the policy debate, but also to the dedication and hard work of the Society’s expert members who developed the scientific statement and the position statement, and who continually provide expert comment on the topic in a number of media and policy venues.

The Endocrine Society will continue its efforts to inform the public policy debate on EDCs through outreach to legislators and policymakers and to raise awareness among the public through continued response to media inquiries.