Massachusetts Joint Committee on Consumer Protection

Massachusetts Joint Committee on Advanced Information Technology, the Internet and Cybersecurity Committee 

24 Beacon St. Room 506

Boston, MA 02133

Subject: In Support of Technology Safety Bills S. 186, S. 187, H. 115, H. 105-114

Dear Esteemed Legislators,

I am writing in support of legislation that which reduces RFR exposure, especially for children who are more vulnerable.  

I am Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics and of Environmental & Occupational Health George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences and George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health. I am also past chair of the Council on Environmental Health of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and also served on the Children’s Health Protection Advisory Committee for the US EPA. 

We assume that our federal health and environmental agencies regularly review the latest research and ensure that cell phones and wireless devices are safe. However, U.S. agencies which regulate cell phone radiation have not shown they have evaluated the research on children’s unique vulnerability to ensure long term safety.   

The reality is that US safety regulations for cell phone radiation were last set twenty-five years ago based on science that is now outdated.  The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is the primary agency responsible for regulating wireless radiation. The FCC has no expertise related to human health topics. Moreover, federal agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency or the National Cancer Institute or the Food and Drug Administration have not carried out up-to-date full scientific review of this growing technology.  Just like the thousands of chemicals in our environment today, wireless radiation has not had appropriate oversight. It has slipped through the cracks.  

The one agency which has carried out studies on the impact of long term exposure to electromagnetic fields and human health is the National Toxicology Program (NTP), a component of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. The NTP found:

• Clear evidence of an association with tumors in the hearts of male rats. The tumors were malignant schwannomas.
• Some evidence of an association with tumors in the brains of male rats. The tumors were malignant gliomas.
• Some evidence of an association with tumors in the adrenal glands of male rats. The tumors were benign, malignant, or complex combined pheochromocytoma.

Pediatricians have long called for an update to this outdated cell phone radiation test method because research finds children can absorb up to 10 or more times higher wireless radiation than adults into their brain, eyes and bone marrow.  Children are not little adults. As we sadly learned with early childhood lead exposures leaving long-lasting impairments, the developing brain is particularly susceptible.  Unlike my generation, today’s youth will be exposed for years and years. 

Please support legislation that reduces children’s radiofrequency radiation exposure and call on the federal government to strengthen human exposure limits to protect children. I am glad to answer any questions that you have. 

Sincerely, 

Jerome Paulson MD FAAP