Sponsors (39)
Directs HHS (with FDA and NIH) to study links between chemical hair straighteners and uterine cancer, emphasizing impacts on women of color; methodology due in 45 days, study starts in 180 days, final report in 2 years.
Official title: To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to study and report on the relationship between hair straighteners and uterine cancer, particularly among women of color.
Introduced July 15, 2025 by Yvette Diane Clarke · Last progress July 15, 2025
The bill trades a structured, disaggregated two-year study that can produce stronger evidence and spur safer product testing for a delay in immediate protections and the risk of limited findings or higher consumer costs.
Women—particularly women of color—will gain clearer, disaggregated evidence about links between chemical hair straighteners and uterine cancer, enabling better prevention, awareness, and targeted outreach.
Consumers could face reduced exposure to harmful chemicals if the evidence prompts the FDA to require stronger safety testing and oversight of hair-straightening products.
Congress and public-health authorities will receive timely, disaggregated data (within two years) to inform targeted regulatory, research, and community-health actions.
Women—especially women of color—may remain exposed to potentially harmful chemicals for up to two years while the study is completed, delaying immediate protections.
The study's findings could be limited by existing data gaps or by industry non-cooperation, leaving uncertainty about risks and weakening the evidence base for action.
If the study leads to new FDA testing or safety mandates, manufacturers may pass compliance costs on to consumers, raising prices for hair products and salon services.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Requires HHS, working with the FDA and NIH, to run a nationwide study on whether chemical hair straighteners are linked to uterine cancer, with special attention to higher rates among women of color. The bill sets deadlines: a study methodology to relevant congressional committees within 45 days, study start within 180 days, and a final report within two years of enactment.