Public Comments

Dear West Virginia House of Delegates Health Committee,

I am writing you to express my support for House Bill 4392, and would urge you to do the same. Among the many challenges that our great state faces, secretly poisoning our children should not be one of them. In this case, the destructive and unnecessary additives that I’m referring to are Synthetic Dyes. Synthetic Food Dyes have impacted our family in ways we would have never imagined. Over the past two years our eldest child has suffered from night terrors with episodes of sleepwalking, tremors while he sleeps, outbursts of aggression that are out of the ordinary for his personality, difficulty focusing on tasks, and potentially much worse.

Over two years ago we decided to consult with his doctors about these symptoms which were becoming life altering. His pediatrician at the time pushed for an ADHD diagnosis, which would have meant more synthetic drugs to attempt to treat his symptoms. Thankfully for us, the teachers at his Montessori School pushed back strongly at that notion. We continued to explore what environmental factors could be causing these issues. What we found was most all of his behavior and sleep-related symptoms stopped entirely after we cut synthetic dyes out of our diets. 

In the process of getting rid of synthetic dyes from our house, we’ve had doctors and pharmacists belittle our choices, because, believe it or not, this poison is in our children’s medicine! These unnecessary additives serve zero nutritional purpose other than to color the drugs and foods they’re present in. They do not add flavor, nor do they change the active ingredients to make the medicine work better. A year ago our son was diagnosed with a chronic illness. We were in and out of the hospital for weeks and in that time all of our efforts to avoid synthetic dyes were foiled. Hospitals didn’t have dye free options for medications and finding food options without dyes was close to impossible. Avoiding the consumption of synthetic dyes is truly an exhausting practice requiring massive amounts of time researching ingredients and finding brands and stores that have access to safer options. In addition, this means we have to drive to Jefferson Pharmacy in Ranson (an hour drive round trip) every time we need an antibiotic, steroid, or virtually any children-specific medicine.

Routinely, our son is prescribed new medications with his chronic illness. And as you’d expect, most of the medicine contains Red Dye 40. To make matters worse, under current FDA regulations, because the medicine is “widely available commercially” (all still tainted with synthetic dyes) the local compounding facility, which has saved us many times in the past, was barred from compounding the medicine dye free. They’re the ONLY compounding facility in our area with the capacity to make medicine without this unnecessary and harmful chemical, and even still they have unnecessary burdens placed on them.

Extensive research, including studies by the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA), a division of the California Environmental Protection Agency, has linked synthetic dyes to adverse neurobehavioral effects in children. Chronic exposure to these dyes can impair children’s ability to learn, succeed in school, and maintain healthy relationships with peers, potentially leading to serious long-term consequences. Moreover, Red 3, is a known carcinogen, while Yellow 5 and Yellow 6 may contain carcinogenic contaminants. Red 3 and Yellow 5 have also been identified as genotoxic.

According to the OEHHA report, reactions to synthetic dyes can mimic or exacerbate existing mental health conditions like ADHD. Neurobehavioral effects caused or worsened by these dyes in children include hyperactivity, inattentiveness, restlessness, sleeplessness, irritability, and aggression. Given the risks associated with consuming synthetic dyes, I believe it is crucial that we take action to protect our children. [fact sheet: https://bit.ly/4e4kIZ9]

New research now shows a direct link to an increased risk for inflammatory bowel disease, and synthetic dyes which are commonly found in our food and medicine. [https://www.uhhospitals.org/blog/articles/2023/02/can-red-food-dye-give-you-ibd#:~:text=New research raises concerns that,known as Red Dye 40.]

I hope you'll consider championing House Bill 4392 to ban synthetic dyes in pharmaceuticals on behalf of the citizens of West Virginia. Such a change is feasible and could significantly benefit thousands of lives, particularly the most vulnerable members of our population.

Thank you for your consideration and for the work you’re doing on our behalf.

Warm regards, Robby Blair

Martinsburg, WV

Driving under the influence that results in the loss of life is not an accident, it is a preventable choice with irreversible consequences. Increasing both the sentencing range and fines for DUI causing death reflects the seriousness of these crimes and honors the lives lost due to impaired driving.

• notifications are actually delivered,
• contact information is kept up to date,
• individuals understand how to re-register.

• people with longer sentences,
• people with late parole/probation release dates,
• and people whose notifications are delayed.

• translation or accessible notification formats for non-English speakers or people with disabilities,
• tracking or reporting back to the Legislature on compliance rates,
• accountability if the Division of Corrections or Probation fails to notify eligible individuals.

please pass!

• required language-access procedures for families (translation/interpreting standards),
• disability-specific behavioral safeguards (e.g., specific processes before exclusionary discipline for students with disabilities),
• clear due-process requirements tied to the new “trauma-informed” discipline approach.

• embeds “implicit bias” work inside a state policy landscape moving to eliminate DEI programs and trainings (SB 474),  
• delegates too much to later rulemaking,  
• lacks concrete, enforceable safeguards for disability-related behavior supports and language access.  

• Measles requires ~95% vaccination coverage to prevent outbreaks (CDC).
• During recent U.S. measles outbreaks, the majority of cases occurred in unvaccinated or under-vaccinated populations, often linked to schools or universities.
• Mumps outbreaks on college campuses have occurred repeatedly in states that weakened vaccination compliance.

• 126 Primary Care Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs)
• ~793,000 West Virginians live in designated primary-care shortage areas
• Only ~38% of primary-care need is currently met
• 43% of rural hospitals operate at negative margins

• emergency rooms,
• rural hospitals,
• immunocompromised communities,
• elderly populations,
• and childcare and K-12 school systems.

• offer tuition credits,
• provide housing priority,
• or use public-health promotion strategies that are widely accepted and legal in other states.

• outbreaks become foreseeable,
• harm becomes preventable,
• and liability exposure increases.

• class cancellations,
• housing disruptions,
• athletic shutdowns,
• and litigation from students or staff harmed during outbreaks they were legally barred from preventing.

• medical exemptions,
• informed consent,
• and individualized accommodation.

• one of the oldest populations in the country,
• persistent healthcare shortages,
• and fragile rural hospital systems.

I agree with this bill as cameras in classrooms could ensure the safety of students as well as staff. accusations could be authenticated meanwhile deterring the acts of bullying, vandalism, theft, disruptions, and more. Classrooms would be held to more accountability, making the environment comfortable for work and learning. The safety of all individuals should be of priority, even in classrooms. The transition to this would be smooth, as there are already cameras in hallways, stairwells, outside the building, etc.

I disagree with this bill as I don't think that Charlie Kirk is symbolic of freedom of speech. While he did use his rights to practice and grew a large audience, he was not the first, nor the most successful. His practices did not create a movement or a change for the betterment of society collectively. he was a debater who more often than not was controversial and criticized core values and ideas of our society.

 i’m in agreement with this.

I completely disagree with this bill. I believe everyone should have a permit if they own or have a gun. If they are not trained to use a gun, then that is a safety hazard; someone could get hurt, or someone could abuse this, and they could commit serious crimes.

• Lack of FDA approval
• Reports of contamination, adulteration, and inconsistent potency
• Documented adverse health outcomes and dependence risks

• Regulated under a physician-certified medical program
• Subject to controlled dispensing, tracking, and testing
• Used by patients with chronic pain, cancer, neurological disorders, and other qualifying conditions when traditional pharmaceuticals fail

• Treating medically relevant substances as recreational intoxicants
• Prioritizing enforcement and penalties over patient access and safety
• Creating chilling effects for lawful commerce that supports medical patients

• Discourage lawful businesses that also serve medical cannabis patients
• Increase compliance costs that are passed on to patients
• Confuse consumers and employers regarding legality, testing, and enforcement standards

• Improperly conflates kratom with medically relevant cannabinoid products
• Places public-health substances under an alcohol enforcement agency
• Risks undermining West Virginia’s medical cannabis program and patient access
• Fails to reflect the nuanced, evidence-based reasoning used by states like California when addressing kratom specifically

• Primary care shortage areas: West Virginia has 126 designated primary care HPSAs, with ~793,019 people living in designated shortage areas; only ~38.28% of need met, and 163 additional practitioners needed to remove the designations.  
• Mental health shortage areas: West Virginia has 124 mental health HPSAs, only ~5.68% of need met, and 94 practitioners needed to remove designations.  
• Rural hospital financial stress: 43% of rural hospitals in West Virginia operate on negative margins.  

1. Synthetic dyes serve no functional purpose beyond aesthetics. These dyes, often derived from petroleum byproducts, offer no nutritional value. They are often used to make unhealthy foods look more appealing, so that consumers will want to buy them
2. Scientific research confirms their harm. The OEHHA report, which analyzed 27 clinical trials, found that synthetic dyes can cause or worsen hyperactivity, inattention, restlessness, irritability, sleeplessness, and aggression in some children. Additionally, consuming dyes can worsen or mimic ADHD symptoms.