The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says it is launching a new effort to examine potential health effects of cellphone-related electromagnetic radiation, a move aligned with long-running concerns voiced by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The initiative comes as some older federal web pages were removed or redirected, even as major public health and regulatory bodies continue to say evidence has not established a definitive causal link between cellphone use and cancer.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) says it is launching a new study initiative examining electromagnetic radiation and human health, with an emphasis on identifying gaps in scientific knowledge and assessing potential risks tied to newer technologies.
HHS spokesman Andrew Nixon said the effort is moving forward as older federal web pages that had presented more definitive-sounding assurances about cellphone safety were removed, calling those prior conclusions outdated. In at least one case, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)—an agency within HHS—has redirected pages that previously addressed whether cellphones pose a health hazard. The FDA’s current cell phone radiation page still states that “the weight of scientific evidence has not linked cell phone radio frequency radiation with any health problems,” while also describing the FDA’s role in coordinating with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and providing information to the public.
The Daily Wire, which reported the HHS initiative, said the work was directed by President Donald Trump’s “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) Commission. The White House has said the MAHA Commission is chaired by Kennedy and is tasked with investigating drivers of chronic disease, with an early emphasis on childhood chronic illness.
The push comes amid ongoing debate about how to interpret a large body of research on radiofrequency (RF) energy from phones. The National Cancer Institute says evidence to date suggests cell phone use does not cause brain cancer or other cancers in humans, while acknowledging that studies have produced mixed results and that research continues. The CDC says there is no scientific evidence that provides a definite answer on whether cell phone use causes cancer and notes that more research is needed.
Kennedy, an environmental lawyer, has for years argued that wireless radiation poses serious health risks. He previously chaired Children’s Health Defense, and the group has pursued litigation challenging FCC decisions not to update radiofrequency exposure guidelines; a federal appeals court in 2021 ordered the FCC to better explain its reasoning on certain aspects of the record.
Many scientists and health agencies note that cellphone signals are a form of non-ionizing radiation, which differs from ionizing radiation such as X-rays, and point to large epidemiological research that has generally not found consistent evidence of increased cancer risk from cellphone use. A World Health Organization-commissioned systematic review published in 2024 similarly reported no association between mobile phone use and several head and brain cancers in the highest-quality human observational evidence assessed, while recommending continued study as technologies and usage patterns evolve.
