Senators Pryor and Cardin introduce the Nanotechnology Safety Act of 2010

By Ricardo Carvajal –

According to a press release issued by Senator Mark Pryor's office, Senator Pryor (D-AR) has teamed up with Senator Benjamin Cardin (D-MD) to introduce the Nanotechnology Safety Act of 2010.  The bill, introduced on January 21, 2010 as S. 2942, is intended "to address potential health and safety risks about products that contain nanotechnology materials."  The legislation would "establish a program within the [FDA] to assess the health and safety implications of nanotechnology in everyday products and develop best practices for companies who employ nanotechnology."  Further, the legislation would authorize $25 million per year from 2011 through 2015 for the program; currently, FDA does not receive nanotechnology-specific funding.  We will provide a summary of the legislation when it becomes available.