Exposure limits & oversight

In response to the question of my personal health issues caused by exposure to EMFs, radio frequency, and wireless radiation exposure: I have not been able to go anywhere for over 10 years where there are groups of people, because of the high EMFs, etc. levels caused by their cellphones, and, of course, the proliferation of cell towers, including 5G. After so many years of being mostly stuck in the house, my mental state can be difficult to deal with. Wearing personal shielding clothing, I am only able to go to the store for groceries and other necessities, a local park, and the library for short periods of time. Due to the radiation from Smart Meters and cell towers in the vicinity of the mobile home park where we live, I can no longer spend time in my own backyard, which is adjacent to a beautiful, large creek. Sadly, I can no longer work in the garden. Before I got dramatically sick from cumulative wi-fi exposure on July 3, 2016, I was very active socially. For many years, I was a folk musician and performed all over the U.S and also in Europe. I also produced a music festival in Berkeley, California. But that life is over for me, now. When I got sick because of smart meters, cell towers, and the wi-fi router in our house, I couldn’t talk and I could barely walk, and what I did try to say was described as “gibberish”. Basically, my brain shut down to the bare minimum necessary to keep my body alive. It took 8 months of sleeping 10 hours a night in a house with absolutely no wi-fi and lots of shielding on the doors and windows (and excellent natural health care, including dietary measures) before I could think straight and communicate clearly again. I might add that after Smart Meters were put on the electric meters in our mobile home park with approximately 40 units, the bees and butterflies started dying. Of course, we “opted out” and convinced several neighbors close by to do the same. Actually, we have been paying their opt-out fees for about 8 years. I urge you to take the human and environmental consequences of EMF exposure seriously and consider slowing down the increasing number of 5G towers across the country. In making these important decisions for every American, please remember me and everyone who spoke against more microwave/EMF technology. You have a chance now to prevent the coming avalanche of cancer, atrial fibrillation, other heart problems, and nervous system disorders, including mental problems. Microwave radiation has a severe impact on the body, but by the time most people realize it, they are already very sick and it is difficult to recover. I am one of the lucky ones who managed to recover, thanks to my partner who has made a huge effort to totally shield our house, including the windows, to protect us. I will be 80 years old in December and I live in a mobile home that is totally shielded to keep out microwave-radiation, thanks to the efforts of my partner. We have incurred approximately $5,000 in costs for the shielding necessary to live in a wi-fi free home with WIRED computers and router. My partner is a wholistic chiropractor, and he has many patients who are ill (and some who have died) because of wi-fi exposure, including but not limited to cancer and atrial fibrillation, which is happening more and more across the U.S. We are very grateful to Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. for focusing on the dangers of this harmful technology. It’s long over-due for regulation.

In about 2011, I began noticing that I was bothered by wireless radiation. It began with the newer TV's which I could not use, then it escalated to wi-fi and cell phones. After becoming inundated by my many neighbors wi-fi, I had to leave my home and sleep in the country, because I could no longer sleep. I began sleeping in a building I had access to, in the country, which helped. Along with sleep difficulties, the exposure caused me nerve pain up and down my middle, tingling feet, tachycardia, and more. After a hard search on what to do, trying to shield my home to no avail, I made the very difficult decision to move to Green Bank, West Virginia. My life was not a life I wanted to leave, and like all who have come here, I spent a lot of money making the move. And I spent a lot of money on home shielding attempts. I have lived and owned a home in Green Bank area for 10 years now, and have made a life here, but still find I am frustrated at the limitations that have been placed on me and the other refugees here. At the very least, we need a place to live. A protected area. Although Green Bank is called the "Quiet Zone," and it is better than the outside world, due to no cell towers and smart meters, etc., It is far from perfect and far from the kind of quiet people who have this affliction need. Those of us who suffer this challenge have a right to a place to live on this earth. This has truly become a 'human rights issue,' and we need help.

I am submitting this comment in response to HHS’s Request for Information on Electromagnetic Fields (EMFs), Radiofrequency (RF) Radiation, and Wireless Radiation Exposure. I am responding from the perspective of a concerned member of the public. I support people affected by wireless radiation and that's why I believe HHS should address this issue. I support HHS taking an active role in examining the potential health and environmental effects of wireless radiation. I urge HHS to carefully evaluate these experiences and the scientific evidence, identify gaps in current research, give particular attention to children and other potentially vulnerable populations, and establish appropriate federal research priorities regarding wireless radiation and public health. For decades, a silent plague has been woven into the fabric of our lives, eminating from the cell phones in our pockets, to the Wi-Fi in our homes and the cell towers that dot our horizons. The NIH spent ten years and thirty million dollars researching how Electro-Magnetic Radiation affects our bodies and finding DNA Damage, Heart Damage and other serious health risks. The NIH quietly ended the study even though we are exposed to six hundred per cent more EMR's in our homes today than we were ten years ago. No more follow ups, updates or answers from NIH after thirty million taxpayer dollars were simply wasted. If you lost a loved one to a needless automobile or truck crash.due to a distracted driver using a smart phone, you would be very upset. Now the public must push the door wide open and demand more than studies. We must demand a fundemental re-evaulation of our relationship with this technology. Thereby prioritizing human biology over corporate convenience and wireless profits. The invisible assualt must end with truly protective limits. Cellphone use was cited as the distraction in 14% of all distraction-affected fatal traffic crashes in 2024. In these crashes, police reports stated that at least one of the involved drivers was talking on, listening to, or engaged in some other cellphone activity at the time of the crash. According to NHTSA, sending or reading a text takes your eyes off the road for 5 seconds, which is like driving the length of an entire football field at 55 MPH with your eyes closed. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that 3,208 people died in distraction-affected crashes in 2024. This is a decrease of about 2% from 3,283 deaths in 2023. The highest percentage of drivers using cellphones in fatal crashes were in the 25-34 age group: 27% of drivers involved in these crashes were using cellphones in some way. Thank you for pursuing this topic, Cynthia Hackman

Human-made EMF is a novel exposure to which neither human beings nor other life forms are adapted on the basis of biological natural selection. The radiation levels currently present in our environments represent one of the, if not the, most serious cases of evolutionary mismatch. This basic fact urges caution and should inform practical guidelines and regulations.

My health issues began when I lived about 1/4 mile from a cell tower and began using a cell phone. I now have multiple chemical sensitivity and electrosensitivity. I have had to make drastic changes in order to continue working and try to be well. It is increasingly difficult to do so with most utilities using smart meters and increasing numbers of satellites beaming EMF to the earth. Those who are more sensitive are the canaries in the coal mine, predicting the health issues to come for those less sensitive. Please put restrictions on EMF exposure in neighborhoods, schools, workplaces, etc. to protect us and future generations. Abigail Haberman MD

thank you for this opportunity When 5G was introduces several years ago in Santa Barbara where I live I developed mild to moderate symptoms of tinnitus. It took a couple months to realize this was happening, but at some point I distinctly remember noticing I was not hearing the background sounds I used to hear when it was really quiet outside; insect noises esp. at dusk and sunrise, far away train noises, high flying aircraft, quiet bird chirps, chipmunks, squirrels quarreling etc. All I was getting was a low background hum tone that was louder than the quiet sounds that were always there in the past and I discovered my personal tinnitus. This alarmed me. I went for several years in this state resigned to the "progress" and savoring I still had hearing at all as some cases of tinnitus I read about were brutal by comparison to my symptoms. Our house has used wifi for computers since before 5G came out without a noticeable effect on my hearing, but I thought to switch to Ethernet cabling and stopped using the wifi router to see if there was an improvement to my hearing and to validate my thought that I was sensitive to the EMF radiation. Sure enough, in a couple of weeks, the tinnitus resolved a little and I started very occasionally hearing the faint sounds in the world again, esp. when I woke up in the early morning. My tinnitus is still present 99.9%+ of the time in my ears, but I do occasionally get to experience some relief from tinnitus. Increasing the amount of EMF in this high frequency area of spectrum is very likely to negatively affect me personally and is something I do not want the govt. to allow. thank you for taking comments. Bill Palmisano

Re: RFI Docket response on EMF & EMR comments Re: FCC’s failure to set safe guidelines for EMR exposure. This includes cell phones, all ‘Smart’ devices including smart meters, cell towers, cell repeating units, WIFI in buildings, outside WIFI repeaters, automobile EMR emitting devices, etc. The FCC or any agency that sets safety standards for all these devices need to do thorough scientific studies, but in the meantime, they must mitigate the levels of EMR from ALL devices. Re-tooling is required, no doubt, but it’s the FCC’s fault for allowing the level of EMR being emitted from the start. When cell phones first came out, the telecom industry warned its shareholders that they may be sued for injuries from people who were harmed by the devices. They never warned the customers buying the phones! This is blatant disregard for human health and safety. I have had EHS (also called EMR Syndrome) for over 12 years, all due to the exponential rollout of cell phones/towers, WIFI, and Smart Meters. My life went from normal to very ill in a short period of time. It took me a while to find out it was EHS. When exposed to EMR, I experience heart arrhythmias, an allover weak feeling, my legs feel very heavy suddenly (almost always a Smart Meter for that symptom), migraines, tinnitus, and sometimes stinging of the skin depending upon the level of EMR. If I don’t get away from the exposure quickly, I feel like I’ll pass out. I purchased a Safe & Sound Pro 2 EMF meter to discover where it is safe for me (lower EMF’s). The meter is certified and calibrated, and I can confirm that there are hardly any places left where the levels are truly safe. The safety standard I use is OSHA Standard for EMF exposure for Telecom workers: https://cwa-union.org/sites/default/files/osh-fact-sheet-16-microwave_and_radio_frequency_radiation.pdf 10 mW/cm(2) (milliwatt hour per square centimeter) for periods of 0.1 hour or more. Literally, I have NEVER found readings that are that low except deep in the woods away from homes, towers, and industry. All readings are higher. Smart Meters have been mostly 22,000 mW/sqMeter(intermittently). A parking lot near us presents readings between 12,000 to 1 Million mW/sqMeter! People are being bathed in this excessive exposure every time they go to that shopping center. Cancer, heart issues, brain issues, etc. - all are side effects of this deleterious exposure. It’s just a matter of time…. Day after day, people are dying from all the diseases caused by EMR. We have a dear friend who has brain cancer from holding the cellphone near their ear. Schools that have cell towers near them have been encountering students with cancer; some actually have died! It’s a fact that Autism rates have climbed at the same time EMR exposure has climbed. Pregnant women holding their cellphones on their belly are not warned against this, which is criminal, in my opinion. The FCC was ordered by the Court to re-evaluate safe exposure limits for EMR, and they have blatantly avoided doing so. They know exposure levels are WAY too high now and would be lying if they described a high level as safe, so they’re simply avoiding doing what they were ordered to do. The FCC is a captured agency and the people allowing the exposures from cellphones, towers, etc. need to be fired. People with morals need to replace these ‘officials’. If 5G is put up in the area where I live, I could end up living in my basement and never be able to go out again. It would be like being in prison. Is this what the telecom industry wants? Is this what the FCC wants? Is this what HHS wants? There are tens of thousands of people suffering with EHS in dozens of support groups (mostly on social media) communicating around the planet. They are all desperate for relief from this deadly exposure. If you question these principles of exposure, just look into the “Havana Syndrome”. This is a well-documented illness caused by high levels of EMR. It’s time for our government to wake up and stop ignoring this. We are desperate to have our good health back. There are hundreds if not thousands of scientific studies proving the harm of EMR. If you have one iota of care for the citizens of these beloved United States, you will DO something to fully correct the long-evaded issue of extreme EMR exposure to everyone! I will attempt to attach several studies that prove the harm. Thank you for taking this seriously! It’s long overdue.

To the Department of Health and Human Services and the Federal Communications Commission: I am submitting this comment because I believe the federal government has waited far too long to conduct a thorough, modern reassessment of radiofrequency (RF) radiation exposure standards and their ability to protect the public. The FCC adopted its RF exposure limits in 1996. Wireless technology and our exposure environment have changed dramatically since then. We have moved through multiple generations of cellular technology while wireless infrastructure and the number of wireless devices surrounding us have greatly increased. Yet the fundamental FCC RF exposure limits remain unchanged. The question should not simply be whether an individual antenna, tower, or device complies with an existing limit. Federal agencies should determine whether those limits adequately address the real world environment people live in today. People are not exposed to one RF source at a time. We may encounter cell towers and antennas, WiFi routers, cell phones, tablets, Bluetooth devices, smart devices, security systems, and other wireless technologies throughout the day. I am especially concerned about infrastructure located near places where children, older adults, and other potentially vulnerable populations spend significant amounts of time. This includes daycares, schools, 55 and older communities, senior housing, assisted living facilities, and residential neighborhoods. Children may experience wireless RF exposure for virtually their entire lives. Older adults, people with implanted medical devices, workers with substantial occupational exposure, and people with existing health conditions also deserve appropriate consideration. Technology continues to advance rapidly. Public health research and exposure standards should advance with it. There is scientific evidence that deserves serious consideration. The U.S. National Toxicology Program conducted large animal studies of RF radiation and reported findings including malignant schwannomas of the heart in male rats under certain exposure conditions. Research from the Ramazzini Institute and subsequent systematic reviews has added to the scientific literature. At the same time, some human epidemiological research has not found increased risks for several health outcomes. Differences in findings should not be used as a reason to stop investigating. They are a reason for better research. Scientific uncertainty should not become an excuse for continued inaction while wireless technologies and infrastructure continue to expand. I am asking HHS, the FCC, NIH, FDA, CDC, NIEHS, and other appropriate agencies to support rigorous, independent research into cumulative RF exposure, multiple simultaneous RF sources, lifelong exposure beginning in childhood, potentially sensitive populations, reproductive and developmental effects, neurological and biological effects, cancer outcomes, occupational exposure, and current and emerging wireless technologies. Federal agencies should also evaluate real world RF environments around daycares, schools, senior communities, assisted living facilities, and residential areas where people may experience prolonged exposure. The public deserves transparency. Americans should be able to understand when exposure standards were established, the scientific assumptions behind them, how compliance is determined, what research supports them, what research raises concerns, and what remains unknown. I am not asking federal agencies to presume the outcome of the science. I am asking them not to presume the answer before adequately investigating the questions. After three decades of extraordinary changes in wireless technology, the American public deserves a comprehensive reassessment based on today's technologies, today's exposure environment, and today's scientific evidence. Technology should not advance faster than our willingness to investigate its potential effects on human health. I respectfully urge HHS and the FCC to conduct the rigorous, independent, transparent review this issue deserves and to ensure that protection of public health, including potentially vulnerable populations, remains a priority. Thank you for the opportunity to comment. Gina Paeth

As an individual consumer living in Australia, I would ask that the Department of Health and Human Services redefine the safe limits of radiation we now currently experience. I suffer from EHS (electrical hypersensitivity) so I experience first hand, the dangers of the levels we are at. This radiation also accumulates and never leaves our atmosphere. In future generations, this could mean annihilation of our species.

I've been experiencing issues with my hearing, ringing in the ears, having migraines and dizziness since moving into my our current home about 4yrs ago. The high pitched noise at some points has been almost unbearable and makes it incredibly difficult to sleep or think straight. All of this from a smart meter. The utility company won't let us opt out and revert to an analog for any reason, they even went so far as to say they no longer make analog meters, but they do indeed make them still. Everyone in the home can hear the noise. We've tested it and turned off everything in the breaker box and you can hear it still, 24/7. I bought a meter to test the EMF and RF and they are off the charts in unsafe zones and this meters attached to our living room, the main room in our home where our toddlers play all day. I tried using paint that blocks these types of waves and it barely made a dent. I have hearing loss and can barely hear my toddlers in the backseat, rining in my ears and it all started within weeks of moving into this house with the smart meter. I even had my ears checked a couple months ago and they were within normal range, but none of this is normal. I just want to option to choose an analog meter, not a non-transmitting meter, but an analog... I'm happy to pay the additional fee, but I'm not even given an option. The doctor I saw about my hearing offered therapy to help me learn how to ignore the high pitched noise... How does that help fix the problem? There has to be another way and those that are more sensitive to EMF waves, especially, should have options! The data is clear that these levels aren't safe but I have no options for dealing with this issue. PLEASE HELP US!!! I have videos I can share about the meter and how high the levels are but it says it's too large to upload.