The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Advisory Committee on the Medical Uses of Isotopes (ACMUI) met Dec. 5–6, to discuss several medical use oversight issues, including an anticipated future rulemaking for emerging medical technologies (EMTs). The rulemaking is expected to move mature technologies, such as Rubidium-82 (Rb-82) generators and Yttrium-90 microsphere brachytherapy, out of sub-regulatory guidance and into new or existing subparts of NRC’s regulations dictating the minimum training and experience criteria for authorized use of these EMTs among other medical use requirements. Therefore, this rulemaking will be significant to providers and educators in various radiology subspecialty areas, such as interventional radiology, PET imaging and radiation oncology.
The ACMUI provided insights into a draft regulatory basis expected to be released for public comment in the spring. The regulatory basis is an early, pre-proposed rule step in the process intended to define the technical and policy rationale for initiating rulemaking. The ACMUI generally supported the NRC staff’s recommendations.
The American College of Radiology® (ACR®) will continue to follow the NRC EMT rulemaking effort and work appropriately with the agency to share radiology community perspectives. For more information, please contact Michael Peters, ACR Senior Government Affairs Director.