The National Consumers League
Analyzing the Threats to Children
from Consumer Products:
A Symposium on Risk Assessment and
Risk Communication
National Press Club
Washington, DC
January 12, 2000
AGENDA
9:00
- 9:15 a.m. REGISTRATION
9:15
- 9:30 a.m. INTRODUCTION
9:30
- 11:00 a.m. PANEL 1: The
Media’s Role in Covering Health Risks
Using case studies and their own
research, prominent media representatives will discuss how the media currently
covers health and safety risks and ways such coverage could be made more
accurate, timely, and effective.
Moderator: Michele Norris, ABC News
Mary Hager, Newsweek
Anita Manning, USA Today
John Schwartz, Washington Post
11:00
- 11:15 a.m. Break
11:15
- 12:45 p.m. Panel 2: Consumer, Industry, and Regulator Perspectives
What amount and quality of
scientific evidence is required before it is appropriate to notify consumers of
a potential risk from a consumer product and/or withdraw or recall it from the
marketplace?
Moderator: Rick Frank, Olsson, Frank & Weeda
Bill Carroll, The Vinyl Institute
Joan Claybrook, Public Citizen
Robert Earl, International Food
Information Council
Michael Jacobson, Center for Science
in the Public Interest
Lynn Larson, US Food and Drug
Administration
Lori Saltzman, Consumer Product
Safety Commission
-
over -
12:45
- 2:00 p.m. LUNCHEON SPEAKER
Ann Brown, Consumer Product Safety
Commission
2:15
- 3:45 p.m. PANEL 3: Calculating
Risk, Setting Priorities
Children are at risk from myriad
daily activities, including accidental ingestion of household products. Given
this range of hazards, how should parents evaluate warnings about possible
risks to their children from exposures to common household products?
Moderator: Linda Golodner, National Consumers League
Mary Ellen Fise, Consumer Federation
of America
William D. Hueston, University of
Maryland, Department of Veterinary Medicine
James Lamb, Blasland, Bruck &
Lee
Heather Paul, National Safe Kids
Campaign
Kimberly Thompson, Harvard Center
for Risk Analysis
3:45 - 4:00 p.m. Concluding Remarks