Tuberville bill to reauthorize poison control centers passes Senate unanimously

On Thursday, the U.S. Senate passed Senator Tommy Tuberville's (R-Alabama) bipartisan Poison Control Centers Reauthorization Act of 2024 unanimously.

Sen. Tuberville's legislation reauthorizes the Poison Control Centers (PCC) Network program through 2029, providing lifesaving care to millions of families.

Identical legislation cleared the House Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously in March.

"Poison Centers across the country play a critical role in keeping our families and kids safe," said Sen. Tuberville. "I'm particularly proud of Alabama's Poison Center at Children's of Alabama in Birmingham. In addition to providing life-saving treatments, these centers do a great job helping families in crisis, mitigating the burden on emergency rooms, and tracking valuable data about the flow of illicit drugs across the country."

Richard Fogelson is the CEO of America's Poison Centers.

"For more than 70 years Poison Centers have saved countless American lives and continued to keep communities and families safe from poison-related emergencies," said Fogelson. "By providing expert, confidential, and free guidance through the Poison Help line (1-800-222-1222) Poison Centers also save health care dollars and prevent unnecessary hospital visits. Today, Poison Centers are often the unsung heroes on the front lines of responding to emerging public threats. We thank and extend our appreciation to Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), Sen. Ben Luján (D-NM), and Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) for championing our mission and recognizing the critical role the nation's 55 Poison Centers play in protecting the nation's public health."

In May, Senator Tuberville introduced the Poison Control Centers Reauthorization Act of 2024 with U.S. Senators Patty Murray (D-Washington), Ben Ray Luján (D-New Mexico), and Mitt Romney (R-Utah). Following the introduction of the bill, Senator Tuberville and his colleagues passed the legislation unanimously out of HELP committee, 21-0.

The PCC Network program runs the Poison Control National Toll-Free hotline (1-800-222-1222) and 55 poison control centers nationwide-medical support facilities staffed by toxicologists, nurses, and other professionals operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The program is supported by a combination of public and private funding. In 2022, the PCC Network responded to more than 2 million human exposures-receiving an exposure case every 15 seconds on average. Alabama's Poison Information Center is housed at Children's of Alabama in Birmingham.

The Poison Control Centers Reauthorization Act of 2024 reauthorizes the PCC Network program, Poison Control National Toll-Free phone number, and national media campaign, through 2029.

Senator Tommy Tuberville represents Alabama in the United States Senate and is a member of the Senate Armed Services, Agriculture, Veterans' Affairs, and HELP Committees.