Local Issues
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Congress should launch an investigation into what the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is doing to prevent additional superbug infections after a deadly outbreak at a Los Angeles hospital linked to tainted medical scopes, a lawmaker said Monday.
U.S. Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., sent a letter asking the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform to hold a hearing on the issue, which he said "poses both health and national security risks." The committee oversees the FDA.
A U.S. lawmaker on Monday called on the Congress to investigate the medical scopes blamed for an outbreak of a bacterial "superbug" at a University of California, Los Angeles hospital that has infected seven patients.
Representative Ted Lieu, a Democrat from California, said in a letter asking for a congressional oversight committee hearing that the outbreak of the drug-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, or CRE, bacteria posed "both health and national security" risks.
Today, Congressman Lieu sent a letter to Chairman Jason Chaffetz and Ranking Member Elijah Cummings of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform requesting a hearing on the multiple sterilization failures of a medical device known as the duodenoscope. Click here to view the full text of the letter.
Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.), is calling on the House Oversight Committee to hold hearings on a "superbug" that has led to two deaths at a hospital in his district.
Lieu wrote in a letter to Chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) and ranking member Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) that the "superbug" has "both health and national security risks."
Officials at UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical Center in Los Angeles announced last week that a drug-resistant bacteria, known as CRE, had led to two deaths and that 179 people had potentially been exposed. At least seven people have been infected.
Prompted by the UCLA superbug outbreak, a federal lawmaker is calling on Congress to investigate what the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and device makers are doing to prevent further patient deaths and infections.
In a letter sent Monday to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Torrance) said outbreaks related to contaminated medical scopes “have national security ramifications.”
Last week, UCLA's Ronald Reagan Medical Center became the latest in a string of U.S. hospitals suffering outbreaks involving CRE and other deadly bacteria.
LOS ANGELES – Congressman Ted W. Lieu (CA-33) has issued the following statement in light of the explosion at the Torrance Exxon Mobil Refinery:
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Ted W. Lieu (D-Los Angeles) issued the following statement regarding the continued closure of the Long Beach and Los Angeles ports by the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA). PMA announced this morning that ships at Southern California ports will not be unloaded on Thursday, Saturday, Sunday, or Monday, when dockworkers are entitled to overtime pay. This weekend’s closure comes in addition to previous port shutdowns by PMA last weekend.
Click here to see pictures of Congressman Lieu visiting schools in his district.
Congressman Ted Lieu (D-Torrance) issued the following statement today regarding PMA's decision to suspend all vessel work from 5:00 p.m. February 6 to 8:00 a.m. February 9.
“Our ports are critical to Southern California’s economy, and the safety and speed at which goods move through our ports affect large regions of the United States. PMA’s intentional action to close the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles over the weekend is indefensible. PMA’s obstructionist action not only hurts ILWU workers, it will hurt businesses, consumers, and our economy.
Congressman Ted W. Lieu (D-Los Angeles) recently met with U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs secretary Bob McDonald to talk about his concerns relating to veterans issues.
“Secretary McDonald and I had a very productive discussion about the Greater Los Angeles VA and how we can live up to our promise to take care of those who have sacrificed so much for our country,” Lieu said. “It is clear from my conversation with the secretary that he cares deeply about our homeless veterans.”