PFAS Testing Extended For Montco, Bucks Residents Who Were Exposed

HORSHAM TOWNSHIP, PA —A study to examine Montgomery and Bucks County residents who may have been exposed over the years to PFAS, also known as 'forever chemicals' in local drinking water supplies, has been extended.

State Sen. Maria Collett posted a callout on Facebook for those who may have been exposed to get tested.

"Time is running out to participate in the groundbreaking PA PFAS Multi-site Health Study! Lab results will tell you the levels of PFAS in your body, inform discussions with your doctor, and help scientists learn more about the impacts of PFAS on human health," Collett posted recently.

A study was launched over the summer to examine Montgomery and Bucks County residents who may have been exposed over the years to PFAS, which are believed to have been used in products such as firefighting foams that are often used at military bases.

Researchers from the Pennsylvania Department of Health, Temple University, Brown University, and RTI International are conducting the study.

The study sought 1,000 adults over the age of 18 as well as 300 children between the ages of 4 and 17 who live in a number of municipalities in both Montgomery and Bucks counties.

Horsham Township Manager Bill Walker said the study was extended late last fall for another 500 adults to be tested. He said the testing program is low on children with only 85 tested so far.

Horsham Township and surrounding communities have dealt with PFAS chemicals from the former Willow Grove Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base.

Those communities include: Horsham, Abington, Upper Dublin, Hatboro, and Upper Moreland in Montgomery County and Ivyland, Warminster, Warrington, Northampton, Upper Southampton, and Warwick in Bucks County.

"We supported the testing from Day One," Walker said. "We think it's very important."

Walker said the township promotes the testing on its website and has signs posted in the municipal complex and throughout Horsham Township.

Township officials have been critical of Pennsylvania's recently-adopted regulations to protect the state's drinking water from PFAS chemicals by setting new limits on two forms of per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).

Horsham officials and former State Rep. Todd Stephens said the state's measures were not aggressive enough.

The new rule sets maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) in drinking water for two forms of PFAS – perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) – in order to protect the public from potential adverse health effects linked to exposure to PFOA and PFOS.

Anyone interested in getting tested can call 877-267-2890 to see if they qualify for the study. To learn more and enroll, visit: https://papfas.rti.org/