Docket: HHS-OASH-2026-0397
FR Doc No: 2026-19252
Comment Submitted By: Rex Funk
Affiliation: EMF Consultant / Member of the Public
Attachments: Three peer-reviewed studies (see attached PDFs)
To the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health:
I am submitting this comment as an individual with direct personal
experience of adverse health effects from radiofrequency (RF) exposure,
and now as an EMF consultant working with others who share these
experiences.
BACKGROUND AND PERSONAL EXPERIENCE
In 2018 I became aware of negative health reactions to RF exposure from
cell phones, Wi-Fi, and related wireless sources. I learned to reduce my
exposure and to avoid exposures in public spaces. This has been a
tormenting experience and it remains very difficult to function in
mainstream society, because RF sources are now essentially everywhere.
I am unable to work in typical job settings. I now work as an EMF
consultant helping people who are also noticing reactions to RF and other
forms of electromagnetic fields (EMF). Some of my clients are even more
sensitive than I am and have suffered greatly — unable to function
normally in society or even in their own homes — simply because these
devices were assumed safe without proper consideration of true safety.
They must spend thousands of dollars to identify and mitigate
environmental stressors, and many cannot afford to improve their
situation at all.
RESPONSES TO SPECIFIC RFI QUESTIONS
1. Effects below current exposure limits. The assumption that heating
(thermal) effects are the only relevant biological mechanism is not
acceptable. Thousands of independent, peer-reviewed studies report
biological effects beyond thermal mechanisms, and this literature has
been largely ignored in U.S. policy. I have attached three such
studies for your consideration. HHS should commission systematic
reviews of this body of evidence rather than relying solely on
assessments that discount it.
2. Sensitive populations. Children are being enabled to grow up in a sea
of RF radiation without adequate study of possible effects on the
developing body. This should not be tolerated. Dedicated pediatric
research, and precautionary measures in schools pending that research,
should be a funding priority.
3. People with electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS). Federal research
agendas should include affected individuals as a defined population:
clinical characterization, diagnostic criteria, disability
accommodations, and access to low-EMF environments. Many people like
my clients cannot work, attend school, or use public services.
4. Practical guidance and mitigation access. HHS should publish plain-
language exposure-reduction guidance and consider how to make
assessment and mitigation affordable. At present, relief is available
only to those who can pay thousands of dollars out of pocket.
5. Research priorities. Highest priorities in my view: long-term studies
of chronic low-level exposure; personal dosimetry reflecting real-
world use; studies of children and adolescents; and mechanistic work
on non-thermal biological effects.
I support transparent, science-informed decision-making and urge HHS to
treat the existing independent literature — and the lived experience of
thousands of affected people — with the seriousness it deserves.
Respectfully submitted,
Rex Funk
Woodstock, NY
rex@emfcheck.com
845-853-6060
1. & 2. I am responding as: family member of an individual
3a. Type of wireless or RF/EMF sources involved (e.g., mobile phones, Wi-Fi, smart meters…)high voltage power lines
3b. Nature, duration, frequency, and approximate timing (e.g., years):During two years when we lived very near to high voltage power lines.
3c. Adverse health effect(s) experienced:My 4 year old son was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia at the age of 4 years old after living for two years in close proximity to high voltage overhead power lines.
3d. Time from first exposure to first appearance of adverse health effects; and did a change in exposure coincide with the onset of adverse effects:approximately one year after exposure over a two year period he was diagnosed.
3e. Was medical evaluation or treatment sought? (Optionally:) Was there a diagnosis?Yes, he received three years of chemotherapy and cranial radiation after the diagnosis of ALL
3f. Were steps taken to reduce or eliminate exposure, and were there subsequent changes in the effects?We moved away from the power lines once he was diagnosed.
I have a friend who was highly sensitive to non-native EMFs. She would break out in a rash whenever she was around anyone who had a cell phone on. If she was near a cell tower, she'd get nauseous and experience headaches. She felt debilitated and exhausted whenever she had prolonged exposure in a city or store. She used to tell me "I'm the canary in the coal mine." Miners would bring a canary with them in the mines and if it died, they knew it was an indication of a problem with low oxygen and that they would have to leave the environment in order to survive. My friend passed away just last month. The canary has died. While there are countless studies that point to the harm that comes from non-native EMFs, RF and wireless radiation exposure, once you know someone who has been affected, you can no longer ignore the reality of the dangers they pose. Even cell phone companies admit that you shouldn't touch cell phones or keep them near the body, but it's in the fine print on inserts and most ignore this advice on a daily basis.
I am writing in response to your request and urge you to make the studies that have been conducted more available to the public so that they can change their behavior if they so choose. Have a campaign to educate/inform the public about the effects of non-native EMF exposure. But I also want to make sure you do what you can to ensure that the public is more protected by getting companies to stop installing towers without community input on their location. Cell towers, iPads, and laptops for school children are damaging them physically, mentally, and emotionally. So the first step should be to protect them, the most vulnerable.
In sum, I'd like to see greater awareness about the effects of EMFs and also more accountability/responsibility from tech companies about where they install antennas and even data centers. Community input must be insisted upon and permitted not solely on the basis of the aesthetics of the areas but because of health concerns.
In response to HHS’s Request for Information on Electromagnetic Fields (EMFs), Radiofrequency (RF) Radiation, and Wireless Radiation Exposure.
I am a grandmother who is concerned for the public. I’ve long been concerned with EMF radiation effects, especially for young children, like my grandchildren. Wi Fi radiation is also a major concern. I have bought EMF protection for my home and my children’s home. Honestly, I hope it works, but it was costly to buy. The smart meters are terrible for home owners because of the constant Wi-Fi going across the rooms constantly. Watch this documentary and it will show you proof why EMF radiation isn’t good and how 5G gave college students brain cancer in college because the 5 G towers were aimed at their college campus building. They all died and the 5G tower was the only common denominator. I hope their story was on this documentary. I think it was. https://youtu.be/8ZTiT9ZSg3Q?is=h6TnmG-9u4F_CY3U
I’m very concerned about long term exposure especially from the 5G they’re using now.
I support HHS taking an active role in examining the potential health and environmental effects of wireless radiation with appropriate expertise in medicine, biology, epidemiology, and public health, and the experiences of individuals and families who report being affected should be considered alongside the scientific evidence.
HHS needs to carefully evaluate these experiences and the scientific evidence. Also to 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.
Thank you for letting us voice our opinion.
We are terribly concerned about EMF from the Grid Growth towers and transmission lines that are being proposed for Fairfield County. We have five year old great grandson who will be exposed as a turning tower is a possibility that will be about 200 feet from their house in Fairfield County. We are surrounded by farmland that will be greatly impacted if this East Grid Growth line is passed. Surely a different path can be found without disrupting our farmers and threatening the health of our children!
Please further study the effects of radiation on humans, animals and the environment. We desperately need a thorough investigation before there is any consideration of 6G. Californian firefighters were able to get cell towers permanently banned from being placed on fire stations due to the negative health consequences suffered from them. School children and all other Americans deserve the same care and treatment.
To those individuals functioning at HHS:
We need more stringent RF radiation exposure standards in the United States.
There is a great deal of evidence of harmful biological effects spanning many decades that have been reported in peer reviewed, published, scientific journals. Some of these harmful biological effects are: sleep disruption, headaches, disruption of cell membrane channels, DNA damage, disruptions to heart functioning, leakage of the blood-brain barrier, increased risk of cancer, oxidative stress, anxiety, behavioral disruptions, memory loss, and decreased fertility. There are also anecdotal reports of fatigue, feelings of pressure in the head, nosebleeds, hair loss, ringing in the ears, nausea and ‘brain fog' after exposure to wireless radiation.
The subject is complex and it requires a thoughtful and precautionary approach.
It is very important to understand that radiation exposure guidelines have been declared inadequate by numerous scientists and medical doctors, especially because they were written with adults in mind and not for children. Our children are being exposed to unprecedented, unevaluated, unregulated levels of microwave radiation without complete study, without proper discussion, and without informed consent.
I urge the individuals at HHS to rely on appropriate health and biological expertise and to create better policies focused on precaution and guidelines that adequately protect the public.
The burden of proof lies with those who promote the technology. Rather than asking concerned citizens to prove that RF radiation is harmful, the ones who promote the technology, and those who benefit financially from the technology, need to prove RF radiation is safe.
This issue matters to me personally because I get heart palpations and earaches. My husband also experiences ill health and disrupted sleep with exposure.
I urge the HHS to give meaningful consideration to the experiences and evidence before it and to fully address each of the issues.
I enclose for the record a report of evidence of biological harm from RF exposure. This report, written and compiled by Martin L. Pall, PhD, (Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry and Basic Medical Sciences, Washington State University) is:
5G Risk: The Scientific Perspective
Compelling Evidence for Eight Distinct Types of Great Harm Caused by Electromagnetic Field (EMF) Exposures and the Mechanism that Causes Them
Sincerely,
Judith Story
These towers need to all come down they're giving cancer to children when they're putting near the school in Brazil they took them all down because the crime rate went up that's what's happening here now it's out of control it messes with the brain makes you angry mean and hateful and vindictive it's unhealthy to have these frequency radiation penetrating our house and our bodies I painted my house with Marine lead paint to stop it from coming in I change the screen Windows to copper even the electric meter puts in electric frequencies to not let you sleep I put copper ring around it to stop that and reverse the electricity that they're overcharging us with the new meter people are going to get really angry and start taking them all down it's going to be like a civil war all over again whoever's putting them up are mass murderers just like Bill Gates who profit off a killing people worse than Adolf Hitler I guess if you're a billionaire you could kill people and get away with it you need to do something about this and fast before an epidemic of these continue to harm us people will fight back and start destroying these towers doesn't take much to take him down battery powered sawzall on both them let them fall you had better do something quick we are getting tired of it why isn't your organization do anything about it don't you care or you in on it too population control it's a lethal weapon what don't you understand
When I was 12 my whole life got turned upside down due to EMF. I couldn't do normal things, was ostracized from my peers, teachers, and classmates. I got nosebleeds, stabbing headaches, memory loss, nausea, restless legs, pain, extreme whole-body inflammation, my eyes couldn't focus, and insane fatigue. Everyone around me thought I was crazy or making it up.
But then I was 15 and had to write a research paper on something, I chose to write on EMF. I got paid to have my 15-page research paper published by a company in the United Kingdom that I wrote my freshman year. A classmate who thought I was making it up mocked me for doing that, and later didn't have enough research to back up his paper. I had so much scientific published research on EMF I actually had to take out over 6 pages of my paper. The research was astounding and other countries know and acknowledge the harms of EMF. They protect children. They don't allow cell towers within 2 miles of schools, they have research on the effects of non-ionizing radiation.
My pain from EMF got to such a degree that it felt like in addition to having headaches that felt like someone was stabbing me in the head and I couldn't breathe. Once we started turning off our Wi-Fi at night I was finally able to sleep, and some of the pain went away. The shift was drastic. I am happy to say that a few years later I've recovered and am a lot less sensitive, but that's only thanks to the research I did when I was younger, and to my parents work to protect me and help me heal from the damage.
We should not allow the cell phone companies profiting from these to set the safety standards. That's unethical and we're putting profit over health here in the US. If any third party did the research we would know ad see that we're insanely exceeding the safe amount of radiation a human can tolerate. But instead we are letting the cell phone tower companies tell us what is safe, and we're allowing this to be an unregulated industry.
My teenage years were dictated by EMF and my symptoms. I couldn't go to things I wanted to, hang out with friends, have people over unless they turned their phones off, or be in normalcy in society due to the extreme negative health effects I experienced from EMF and RF.
I have done extensive research on EMF, please read my paper below that was published in the UK. Let's do better for our country and our children - because I was the one who wasn't protected.
https://www.electricsense.com/emf-silent-killer/
I am very concerned about the effects of EMFS, RF and wireless radiation on humans, animals and plants. The detrimental effects on reproduction, mitochondria, thyroid and numerous organs have been researched and documented. Children and pregnant women are particularly vulnerable. Researchers have also found that exposure to these types of radiation increase the risk of various kinds of cancer. Even migratory birds were shown to be affected by exposure to cell towers.
I personally know numerous people who are seriously adversely affected by exposure to wireless radiation in cell phones, cell towers and modems.
I’ve attached documents and studies that provide evidence of harms from exposure to cell phones, wifi and EMFs. It's time for the HHS to take action to safeguard the public in regard to this important issue.