Radiation-testing airport screeners
TSA agents stand near an Advanced Imaging Technology (AIT) full-body scanner at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) in Los Angeles, California. AIT scanners see through clothing to photograph the entire body to reveal undisclosed objects. Increasing use of the scanner at airports by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is being met with outrage by many US travelers. Passengers who refuse an X-ray scan are required to undergo an intimate pat down by TSA agents. (Nov. 22, 2010) Credit: GETTY IMAGES/David McNew
After years of rebuffing health concerns over airport scanners, the Transportation Security Administration plans to conduct new tests on the potential radiation exposure from the machines at more than 100 airports. But the TSA does not plan to retest the machines or passengers. Instead, the agency plans to test its airport security officers to see if they are being exposed to dangerous levels of radiation while working.
News of the test leaked out after the TSA issued a request last month to government vendors to provide wearable, personal dosimeters, devices that measure exposure to radiation.
"TSA is dedicated to the health and safety of its employees," TSA spokesman Nico Melendez said. "We continuously test our technology to ensure it is safe for both passengers and our officers and post all results to our website."
Critics of the TSA support the idea of testing TSA workers. But they continue to call on the TSA to perform independent studies of the full-body scanners. "We still have no idea how much radiation is being imposed on travelers by a properly functioning machine," said James Babb, co-founder of We Won't Fly, a consumer advocacy group.
TSA spokesman Nico Melendez said the scanners have been tested and approved by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health and the U.S. Army Public Health Command.
