| Summary: |
The US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) released this brief statement regarding the safety of nanomaterial-containing products. Pre-market registration is not required, and the CPSC cannot evaluate public risk until a product is introduced for sale. Because there are no nanotechnology-specific regulations, the CPSC will examine nanotech products using the same criteria applied to all other consumer products, checking for defects causing substantial risk of injury to the public. Responsibility is on manufacturers to ensure that their products are safe, and any information to the contrary must be reported to the CPSC. Chronic health effects, a larger concern of nanomaterials, are examined in a similar fashion. The CPSCs chronic hazard guidelines, in conjunction with the Federal Hazardous Substances Act (FHSA), are used in determining whether a product has the potential to cause substantial personal injury or substantial illness. At present, the CPSC is reviewing and updating its guidelines to address the usage of nanomaterials in consumer products. |