Food Quality, New TSCA, and Much More: A Conversation with Lynn R. Goldman, Dean, Milken Institute School of Public Health at GWU

This week, I sat down with Lynn R. Goldman, M.D., M.S., M.P.H., Michael and Lori Milken Dean, Milken Institute School of Public Health; Professor of Environmental and Occupational Health. Dr. Goldman is widely regarded as one of the most influential public health physicians of our time and served as Assistant Administrator for Toxic Substances in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency from 1993 through 1998 under President Bill Clinton.  During her tenure, Dr. Goldman and her team are credited with implementing the 1996 amendments to our nation’s pesticide law, the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act or FIFRA, known as the Food Quality Protection Act.  This ground-breaking law modernized the legal framework for regulating pesticide residues on raw agricultural commodities and processed foods. In our conversation about our industrial chemical law, Toxic Substances Control Act or TSCA, especially under her watch as Toxics Assistant Administrator in the ‘90s, we delve into Dean Goldman’s background as a pediatrician and how that came to influence her decisions in office.  We talk about new TSCA’s roots as the “Kids Safe Chemicals Act,” as well as about how Dr. Goldman and others built upon Senator Lautenberg’s interest in TSCA reform legislation, the parallels with implementing new TSCA, and Dr. Goldman’s experience implementing what was then considered the “new FIFRA.”  We also talk about some of the truly fascinating research that Dean Goldman has pursued at the Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University, including the publication of the 2018 study evaluating the fatality account in Puerto Rico due to Hurricane Maria. It was great speaking with Dean Goldman about her work, past and present, and to get some insight into the historical development of TSCA from someone who was involved in its shaping.  So, here is my discussion with Dr. Lynn Goldman, Michael and Lori Milken Dean at the Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University…. ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW.