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Safety
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 does not justify
FDA regulatory actions, the FDA has urged the
wireless phone industry to take a number of steps,
including the following:
O
Support needed research into possible biological
effects of RF of the type emitted by wireless
phones;
O
Design wireless phones in a way that minimizes
any RF exposure to the user that is not necessary
for device function; and
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