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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 those they can get from wireless phones.
Base stations are thus not the subject of the safety
questions discussed in this document.
WWhhaatt kkiinnddss ooff pphhoonneess aarree tthhee ssuubbjjeecctt ooff tthhiiss uuppddaattee??
The term “wireless phone” refers here to hand-held
wireless phones with built-in antennas, often called
“cell,” “mobile,” or “PCS” phones.These types of wireless
phones can expose the user to measurable RF energy
because of the short distance between the phone and
the user's head.
These RF exposures are limited by FCC safety
guidelines that were developed with the advice of FDA
and other federal health and safety agencies. When the
phone is located at greater distances from the user, the
exposure to RF is drastically lower because a person's
RF exposure decreases rapidly with increasing distance
from the source. The so-called “cordless phones”, which
have a base unit connected to the telephone wiring in a
house, typically operate at far lower power levels, and
thus produce RF exposures far below the FCC safety
limits.
In such a case, 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, 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.
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
!
Federal Communications Commission
!
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
!
National Telecommunications and Information
Administration
The National Institutes of Health participates in some
interagency working group activities, as well.
FDA shares regulatory responsibilities for wireless
phones with the FCC. All phones that are sold in the
United States must comply with FCC safety guidelines
that limit RF exposure. FCC relies on FDA and other
health agencies for safety questions about wireless
phones.