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2. What is the FDA's role concerning the safety of
wireless phones?
Under the law, the FDA does not review the safety of
radiation-emitting consumer products such as wireless
phones before they can be sold, as it does with new drugs
or medical devices. However, the agency has authority to
take action if wireless phones are shown to emit Radio
Frequency (RF) energy at a level that is hazardous to the
user. In such a case, the FDA could require the
manufacturers of wireless phones to notify users of the
health hazard and to repair, replace, or recall the phones
so that the hazard no longer exists.
Although the existing scientific data do not justify FDA
regulatory actions, the FDA has urged the wireless phone
industry to take a number of steps, including the following:
●
Support needed research into possible biological
effects of RF of the type emitted by wireless phones;
●
Design wireless phones in a way that minimizes any RF
exposure to the user that is not necessary for device
function; and
●
Cooperate in providing users of wireless phones with
the best possible information on possible effects of
wireless phone use on human health.
The FDA belongs to an interagency working group of the
federal agencies that have responsibility for different
aspects of RF safety to ensure coordinated efforts at the
federal level. The following agencies belong to this
working group:
●
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
●
Environmental Protection Agency
●
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
●
National Telecommunications and Information
Administration
The National Institutes of Health participates in some
interagency working group activities, as well.
The FDA shares regulatory responsibilities for wireless
phones with the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC). All phones that are sold in the United States must
comply with FCC safety guidelines that limit RF exposure.
The FCC relies on the FDA and other health agencies for
safety questions about wireless phones.
The FCC also regulates the base stations that the wireless
phone networks rely upon. While these base stations
operate at higher power than do the wireless phones
themselves, the RF exposures that people get from these
base stations are typically thousands of times lower than
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