NRC wants potassium iodide for nuclear accidents

["Sandy Perle" <sandyfl@earthlink.net>]

Monday April 26, 3:54 pm Eastern Time

NRC wants potassium iodide for nuclear accidents

WASHINGTON, April 26 (Reuters) - The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission wants to stockpile potassium iodide for public use to 
prevent cancer outbreaks in the case of a severe nuclear power 
plant accident, the agency said on Monday.  

Currently, the drug is only made available to emergency workers 
and select members of the public, like hospital patients, in the 
event of a major nuclear plant disaster.  

The proposed rule change would revise a section of NRC 
emergency preparedness regulations, and put the federal 
government in charge of funding the national stockpiles.  

``The commission supports the position that the federal government 
should fund the purchase of potassium iodide for federal stockpiles 
at appropriately located regional centers,'' the NRC said in a 
statement.  

If taken in time, potassium iodide blocks the thyroid gland's uptake 
of radioactive iodine, helping to prevent thyroid cancers and other 
diseases that might be caused by exposure to airborne radioactive 
iodine dispersed in a nuclear accident, the NRC said.  

NRC staff have been told to work with the Federal Emergency 
Management Agency (FEMA) to establish and maintain the 
regional stockpiles. The commission said it would agree to pay for 
initial stocks of the drug and their resupply if money cannot be 
found in the FEMA budget after the emergency agency discusses 
the idea with states.  

Historically, funding for nuclear power plant emergency response 
plans have been the responsibility of state and local governments, 
working with plant operators, NRC said.  

The proposed rule will be published in an upcoming edition of the 
Federal Register. Interested parties and the public have 90 days 
from the publication date to file comments.  

The proposal can also be seen at www.nrc.gov/NRC/rule.html.

Sandy Perle
E-Mail: sandyfl@earthlink.net 
Personal Website: http://www.geocities.com/capecanaveral/1205

"The object of opening the mind, as of opening 
the mouth, is to close it again on something solid"
              - G. K. Chesterton -
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