Read the full article by Karen Singh (cleveland.com)
“COLUMBUS, Ohio — The chemicals that keep a pan slick, a jacket dry or a carpet stain-resistant could soon disappear from a long list of everyday products sold across the state.
House Bill 272 aims to phase out intentionally added per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a large family of synthetic chemicals valued for resisting water, grease and heat. That durability is also the problem since many linger in the human body as well as the environment for years, which is why they’re commonly known as ‘forever chemicals.’ Federal health officials have linked exposure with higher cholesterol, lower antibody responses to some vaccines, pregnancy-related hypertension and kidney or testicular cancer.
The legislation from Reps. Justin Pizzulli of Scioto County and New Waterford’s Monica Robb Blasdel joins a nationwide push for stronger regulation of those compounds, as more than 300 related bills were taken up across 39 states last year.
The current draft would prohibit manufacturers from selling cookware, food packaging, dental floss, children’s products or firefighting foam containing PFAS beginning Jan. 1, 2027. The restriction would then expand to carpets, cleaning products, cosmetics, fabric treatments, menstrual products, textiles, textile furnishings, ski wax and upholstered furniture one year later.”…