§16-1-9e. Long-term medical study.

The Bureau for Public Health shall endeavor to engage the Centers for Disease Control and other federal agencies for the purpose of creating, organizing and implementing a medical study to assess any long-term health effects resulting from the chemical spill that occurred on January 9, 2014, and which exposed the public to chemicals, including 4-methylcyclohexane.

The commissioner shall conduct such study pursuant to the authority granted to the commissioner pursuant to section six of this article: Provided, That in the event the commissioner determines that, in order to adequately perform such study, additional authority is required, the commissioner shall provide a report of such additional authority requested to the Governor and the Joint Committee on Government and Finance.

The commissioner shall cause to be collected and preserved information from health providers who treated patients presenting with symptoms diagnosed as having been caused or exacerbated as a result of exposure related to the January 9, 2014, chemical spill. The commissioner shall analyze such data and other information deemed relevant by the commissioner and provide a report of the commissioner's findings regarding potential long-term health effects of the January 9, 2014, chemical spill to the Joint Committee on Health by January 1, 2015, including the results of its efforts to engage federal cooperation and assistance for a long-term comprehensive study on the costs of conducting such study on behalf of the state.