DeLauro, Maloney, Dent, and Lieu Call for Swift Approval of FDA Indoor Tanning Regulations

WASHINGTON, DC (March 21, 2016) — U.S. Representatives Rosa DeLauro (CT-03), Carolyn B. Maloney (NY-12), Charles W. Dent (PA-15), and Ted Lieu (CA-33) led 22 of their colleagues on a letter to the Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Robert Califf on Friday calling for swift approval of the agency's recent proposal to place a minimum age of 18 on the use of indoor tanning devices.

"This new rule is a tremendous step to protect young Americans from harmful ultraviolet radiation and curb the spread of skin cancer," they wrote in a letter to the Commissioner. "We applaud the FDA's bold proposal to decrease the prevalence of tanning among adolescents, and urge the agency to finalize the rule as soon as possible."

Under the 2014 reclassification of UV lamps, the FDA now requires black box warning labels on all tanning beds, indicating that the products should not be used by those under the age of 18. Manufacturers are also required to include additional warnings in their marketing materials and show that their products meet performance testing requirements.

The signers reiterate that skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States, with melanoma and skin cancer rates rising even though incident rates for other cancers is decreasing. More than 419,000 cases of skin cancer and about 11,000 case of melanoma can be attributed to indoor tanning, which increases an individual's risk of developing melanoma by 59 percent.

The age restriction comes after DeLauro called on the FDA to follow Connecticut's lead and institute a nationwide ban on tanning bed use by minors.

The full letter is available here.

###