Y4.674/7: AC2/4 COLLECTION AND UTILIZATION OF ACCIDENT AND INJURY DATA / Corsiction of accident deta/ HEARING BEFORE A SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS NINETY-FIRST CONGRESS FIRST SESSION 36-377 JUNE 26, 1969 Printed for the use of the Committee on Government Operations U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE WASHINGTON : 1969 COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS WILLIAM L. DAWSON, Illinois, Chairman CHET HOLIFIELD, California L. H. FOUNTAIN, North Carolina FERNAND J. ST GERMAIN, Rhode Island FLOYD V. HICKS, Washington FLORENCE P. DWYER, New Jersey PAUL N. MCCLOSKEY, JR., California JOHN H. BUCHANAN, JR., Alabama LOWELL P. WEICKER, JR., Connecticut SAM STEIGER, Arizona CHRISTINE RAY DAVIS, Staff Director INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE BENJAMIN S. ROSENTHAL, New York FLORENCE P. DWYER, New Jersey CLARENCE J. BROWN, Ohio GUY VANDER JAGT, Michigan JAMES R. NAUGHTON, Counsel DELPHIS C. GOLDBERG, Professional Staff Member (II) J 66.2 491 G643 CONTENTS Weinstein, Dr. Howard, Associate Director, Office of Product Safety, Food and Drug Administration, Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, accompanied by Álvin L. Gottlieb, Deputy Assistant General Counsel; Dr. Dennis J. McGrath, Chief, Division of Hazardous Substances, Office of Product Safety; Henry C. Verhulst, Director, Division of Poison Control, Office of Product Safety; and Dr. Edward J. Fairchild, Acting Director, Division of Safety Serv- ices, Office of Product Safety--- White, William V., Executive Director, National Commission on Dwyer, Hon. Florence P., a Representative in Congress from the State Fairchild, Dr. Edward J., Acting Director, Division of Safety Services, Weinstein, Dr. Howard, Associate Director, Office of Product Safety, Food and Drug Administration, Department of Health, Education, and Welfare: Résumé of injury reporting contract program con- ducted by the Office of Product Safety, Food and Drug Administra- tion, Consumer Protection and Environmental Health Service___. White, William V., Executive Director, National Commission on Appendix 1.-Questionnaire on accident reporting submitted to Federal agencies by Intergovernmental Relations Subcommittee__ Appendix 2.-Statement of Department of Housing and Urban Develop- ment, presented by James McCullough, Deputy to the Director of the Architectural Division, Federal Housing Administration__. Appendix 3.-Statement of National Center for Health Statistics, Depart- ment of Health, Education, and Welfare, presented by Theodore Appendix 4.-Response of National Center for Health Statistics to sup- Appendix 5.-Statement of Bureau of the Budget, presented by Julius Shiskin, Assistant Director for Statistical Policy-- Appendix 6.-Response of Bureau of the Budget to supplementary Appendix 7.-Statement of Bureau of Labor Statistics presented by Maurice Bresnahan, Acting Chief, Division of Industrial Safety, Office of Manpower and Employment Statistics___ Appendix 8.-Statement of National Transportation Safety Board, Appendix 9.-Statement of Federal Aviation Administration, Department Appendix 11.-Statement of Bureau of Motor Carrier Safety, Department of Transportation_. Appendix 10.-Statement of National Highway Safety Bureau, Depart- Page ment of Transportation____ 104 109 Appendix 12.-Estimates of injuries from consumer products, prepared for 112 Appendix 13.-Revised FHA standards for glass doors.. Appendix 14.-Letter from Janice R. Westaby, associate professor, School of Public Health, University of North Carolina, with attached statement on "Accident Control in Public Health". 120 124 COLLECTION AND UTILIZATION OF ACCIDENT AND INJURY DATA THURSDAY, JUNE 26, 1969 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS, Washington, D.C. The subcommittee met at 10:15 a.m., in room 2203, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. L. H. Fountain (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. Present: Representatives L. H. Fountain, Florence P. Dwyer, and Clarence J. Brown. Also present: James R. Naughton, counsel and William H. Copenhaver, minority counsel. Mr. FOUNTAIN. Let the committee come to order. Under the rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Government Operations has responsibility for studying the operation of Government activities at all levels with respect to economy and efficiency. Today's hearing by the Intergovernmental Relations Subcommittee is being conducted pursuant to that responsibility. The purpose of today's hearing is to take testimony concerning the adequacy of arrangements by Federal departments and agencies for collecting and utilizing accident and injury data. We are particularly concerned with arrangements for collecting and utilizing information relating to accidents and injuries occurring in and around the home or involving products and substances of a type ordinarily used in or around homes. A subcommittee hearing earlier this week disclosed that the Pesticides Regulation Division of the Department of Agriculture, which claimed its accident reporting system was working "very well," received reports on less than 200 pesticide poisonings annually, although it is known that there are at least 5,000 such poisonings each year and there is reason to believe that the total number may be as high as 50,000 annually. Our hearing today is for the purpose of examining the adequacy of accident and injury reporting arrangements of other Federal agencies responsible for regulation of products or otherwise interested in protecting the public from hazardous substances and products and preventing avoidable accidents and injuries. We expect to take testimony today from representatives of the National Commission on Product Safety, the Office of Product Safety of the Food and Drug Administration, and the National Center for Health Statistics, as well as other Federal agencies concerned with (1) |