DeLauro Presses OMB on Non-O157 E. coli

DeLauro Presses OMB on Non-O157 E. coli: "Food Policy & Law
DeLauro Presses OMB on Non-O157 E. coli
by Helena Bottemiller | Jun 23, 2011

Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) is asking the White House Office of Management and Budget to move on a proposal to allow USDA to regulate additional strains of E. coli, beyond the most well-known E. coli O157:H7.

DeLauro sent a formal letter Wednesday to the director of OMB, Jacob Lew, calling for action on the Food Safety and Inspection Service proposal to regulate six more dangerous strains of E.coli. The FSIS proposal under review at OMB has not been made public, but food safety experts expect that the proposal could declare the 'Big Six' adulterants or require testing or other interventions.

'This proposed rule has the potential to protect the health of American consumers from preventable and costly foodborne disease because of certain E. coli serotypes,' writes DeLauro, noting that since USDA declared E. coli O157:H7 a pathogen in 1994, it has become clear that there are additional strains of disease-causing E. coli that are hazardous to public health. The CDC estimates that the six Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STECs) under consideration cause approximately 113,000 illnesses and 300 hospitalizations annually in the United States.

DeLauro points to 'devastating health consequences' associated Shiga toxin-producing E. coli: Severe abdominal pain, bloody diarrhea, kidney failure, and blindness, as well as hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), which is recognized as the leading cause of acute kidney failure in young children, including infants.

'I am disturbed by the reports that suggest OMB has held up action on this proposal and even more concerned about reports that the Agency may be working to indefinitely delay consideration or fundamentally change the proposal at the urging of those who argue that the action is a threat to financial interests,' continues DeLauro in the letter. 'As the public health agency of the USDA, FSIS should not be deterred from its work to protect the public health from known risks in the meat and poultry supply.'

On a call with reporters last week, DeLauro said she was personally pressuring OMB to move forward on the proposal. 'It's a rule that quite frankly is sitting at OMB,' said DeLauro, who accused the meat industry of fighting the rule.

'We know what's happened in Germany ... it's a different strain,' she added, when asked about the catastrophic Germany E. coli O104:H4 outbreak 'We need to be aggressively looking at the other strains.'

The foodborne illness crisis in Germany, which is now the most deadly on record, comes on the heels of an E. coli O111 outbreak last month in Japan. That outbreak -- which sickened 90 people, left 23 with hemolytic uremic syndrome, and killed four -- was tied to a raw beef dish called yukhoe, similar to tartare, popular at barbecue restaurants.

'The tragedies in Germany and Japan should serve as a wakeup call to governments and businesses worldwide. The U.S. is seeing more and more E. coli outbreaks from non-O157 strains,' said Bill Marler, managing partner at Marler Clark (publisher of Food Safety News) in a recent statement. Marler's firm originally petitioned FSIS to regulate STECs in October 2009.

In Northeast Tennessee, federal and state public health officials are investigating outbreaks involving E. coli O157:H7, E. coli O103, and E. coli O169.

Tags:
* adulterant,
* non-O157:H7 E. coli

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