By Mark Moran
Cancer patients in Iowa will be unable to seek legal action against chemical makers under a recent Supreme Court ruling in favor of glyphosate manufacturers. Glyphosate is the pesticide found in the weedkiller Roundup.
Some farmers in the Midwest have said the pesticide ruling is helpful because it provides stability around use of the product.
But state Sen. Catelin Drey, D-Sioux City, who founded Moms for Iowa, a nonprofit for cancer survivors, said giving blanket immunity to chemical makers whose products could be carcinogenic strips Iowans of a basic constitutional right: their day in court.
“Eliminating the right for Iowans who have been impacted by these toxic products to hold manufacturers accountable and be made whole — when everything in their life has been turned upside down — is wrong,” Drey said.
Bayer had cautioned that it could discontinue production of the product while it remained in legal limbo. In February, President Donald Trump activated the Defense Production Act to promote glyphosate-based herbicides, calling them essential to both agriculture and the nation’s military strength.
Iowa lawmakers rejected a so-called “Cancer Gag Act” last year, which would have effectively done at the state level what the Supreme Court did with its ruling. Drey said the Legislature defeated that measure after constituents made it clear they wanted to be able to hold chemical companies accountable for the effects of their products if they or their family members got sick.
“That’s the position of the vast majority of my fellow Iowans,” Drey said. “They also oppose giving pesticide companies immunity from lawsuits.”
Small farmers who use glyphosate in no-till and other sustainable agriculture practices say they use the product in much smaller amounts than large operations and rely on it to keep weeds under control.
