House approves Buchanan’s amendment calling for $6.25M to study impact of red tide

The U.S. House of Representatives on June 12 voted 401-23 to pass an amendment offered by U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL) to allocate $6.25 million to study the impact of red tide and other toxic algal blooms on human health.

“Scientists and researchers still do not know the full extent of red tide’s harmful effects on our health,” Rep. Buchanan said. “That has to change and my measure seeks to advance this important research.”

Rep. Buchanan on June 12 sponsored House Amendment (H.Amdt.) 284 to the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2020, H.R. 2740, to authorize $6.25 million in funds for the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences under the National Institute of Health to support research into the impact of red tide and other harmful algal blooms on human health.

“Red tide is an enormous burden on our community’s economy, environment, and way of life,” said Rep. Buchanan. “Last year’s nearly unprecedented bloom wreaked havoc on the Suncoast.”

Florida in 2018 suffered one of the five worst bouts of red tide in the state’s history, Rep. Buchanan’s office said, with a bloom that plagued the coast for more than 15 months killing thousands of fish, causing severe illness in people who ate contaminated shellfish, and negatively impacting tourism.

While the House approved H.Amdt. 284 the same day it was introduced, the chamber on June 13 left the overall H.R. 2740 as unfinished business. Final passage of the funding package is expected this week, according to the congressman’s office.