Advisory Committee on Human Radiation Experiments
Encyclopedia
The Advisory Committee on Human Radiation Experiments was established in 1994 to investigate questions of the record of the United States government with respect to human radiation experiments. The special committee was created by President
Bill Clinton
in Executive Order 12891, issued January 15, 1994. Ruth Faden
of The Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics chaired the committee. Jonathan D. Moreno
was a senior staff member of the committee. He later wrote the 1999 book Undue Risk: Secret State Experiments on Humans.
The thousand-page final report of the Committee was released in October 1995 at a White House
ceremony.
in 1981. Mother Jones reporter Howard Rosenburg used the Freedom of Information Act
to gather hundreds of documents to investigate total radiation studies which were done at the Oak Ridge Institute for Nuclear Studies (now the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education
). The Mother Jones article triggered a hearing before the Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight
of the House Science and Technology Committee. U.S. Representative
Al Gore
of Tennessee
chaired the hearing. Gore's subcommittee report stated that the radiation experiments were "satisfactory, but not perfect."
In November 1986 a report by the staff of Massachusetts Congressman Ed Markey
was released, entitled American Nuclear Guinea Pigs: three decades of radiation experiments on U.S. citizens. The Markey report stated there were thirty-one human radiation experiments involving nearly 700 people. The report received only cursory media coverage. Markey urged the Department of Energy to make every effort to find the experimental subjects and compensate them for damages, which did not occur. DOE officials knew who conducted the experiments, and the names of some of the subjects. After the report was released, Ronald Reagan
and George H. W. Bush
resisted opening investigations of the radiation experiments.
The report found that between 1945 and 1947 eighteen hospital patients were injected with plutonium. The doctors selected patients likely to die in the near future. Despite the doctors' prognoses, several lived for decades after.
The American Nuclear Guinea Pigs report stated:
winning investigative reports by Eileen Welsome
in The Albuquerque Tribune, entitled The Plutonium Files. This report was different than Markey's, because Welsome revealed the names of the people injected with plutonium. Welsome originally discovered the experiments while sifting through some documents at Kirtland Air Force Base
in Albuquerque in the spring of 1987. What got her curiosity was a report on radioactive animal carcasses. The report identified the victims only by code names.
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
in Executive Order 12891, issued January 15, 1994. Ruth Faden
Ruth Faden
Ruth R. Faden, M.P.H., Ph.D., is the Philip Franklin Wagley Professor of Biomedical Ethics and Executive Director of The Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics at Johns Hopkins University. She is also a Senior Research Scholar at the Kennedy Institute of Ethics, Georgetown University.She has...
of The Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics chaired the committee. Jonathan D. Moreno
Jonathan D. Moreno
Jonathan D. Moreno is a philosopher and historian who specializes in the intersection of bioethics, culture, science, and national security, and has published seminal works on the history, sociology and politics of biology and medicine....
was a senior staff member of the committee. He later wrote the 1999 book Undue Risk: Secret State Experiments on Humans.
The thousand-page final report of the Committee was released in October 1995 at a White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
ceremony.
Background
The scandal first came to public attention in a newsletter called Science Trends in 1976 and in Mother JonesMother Jones (magazine)
Mother Jones is an American independent news organization, featuring investigative and breaking news reporting on politics, the environment, human rights, and culture. Mother Jones has been nominated for 23 National Magazine Awards and has won six times, including for General Excellence in 2001,...
in 1981. Mother Jones reporter Howard Rosenburg used the Freedom of Information Act
Freedom of Information Act (United States)
The Freedom of Information Act is a federal freedom of information law that allows for the full or partial disclosure of previously unreleased information and documents controlled by the United States government. The Act defines agency records subject to disclosure, outlines mandatory disclosure...
to gather hundreds of documents to investigate total radiation studies which were done at the Oak Ridge Institute for Nuclear Studies (now the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education
Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education
The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education is a U.S. Department of Energy institute headquartered in Oak Ridge, Tennessee focusing on scientific initiatives to research health risks from occupational hazards, assess environmental cleanup, respond to radiation medical emergencies, support...
). The Mother Jones article triggered a hearing before the Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight
United States House Science Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight
The Science Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight is one of five subcommittees of the United States House Committee on Science and Technology...
of the House Science and Technology Committee. U.S. Representative
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
Al Gore
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
of Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
chaired the hearing. Gore's subcommittee report stated that the radiation experiments were "satisfactory, but not perfect."
In November 1986 a report by the staff of Massachusetts Congressman Ed Markey
Ed Markey
Edward John "Ed" Markey is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1976. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes most of Boston's northern and western suburbs, such as Medford and Framingham. Markey is the Dean of both the Massachusetts and New England House delegations...
was released, entitled American Nuclear Guinea Pigs: three decades of radiation experiments on U.S. citizens. The Markey report stated there were thirty-one human radiation experiments involving nearly 700 people. The report received only cursory media coverage. Markey urged the Department of Energy to make every effort to find the experimental subjects and compensate them for damages, which did not occur. DOE officials knew who conducted the experiments, and the names of some of the subjects. After the report was released, Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
and George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
resisted opening investigations of the radiation experiments.
The report found that between 1945 and 1947 eighteen hospital patients were injected with plutonium. The doctors selected patients likely to die in the near future. Despite the doctors' prognoses, several lived for decades after.
The American Nuclear Guinea Pigs report stated:
Investigative report
Triggering the Advisory Committee on Human Radiation Experiments was a series of Pulitzer PrizePulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
winning investigative reports by Eileen Welsome
Eileen Welsome
Eileen Welsome is an American journalist. She received a Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting in 1994 while a reporter for The Albuquerque Tribune. She was awarded the prize for her articles about the government's human radiation experiments conducted on unwilling and unknowing Americans during...
in The Albuquerque Tribune, entitled The Plutonium Files. This report was different than Markey's, because Welsome revealed the names of the people injected with plutonium. Welsome originally discovered the experiments while sifting through some documents at Kirtland Air Force Base
Kirtland Air Force Base
Kirtland Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in the southeast quadrant of the Albuquerque, New Mexico urban area, adjacent to the Albuquerque International Sunport. The base was named for the early Army aviator Col. Roy C. Kirtland...
in Albuquerque in the spring of 1987. What got her curiosity was a report on radioactive animal carcasses. The report identified the victims only by code names.
See also
- Human experimentation in the United StatesHuman experimentation in the United StatesThere have been numerous experiments performed on human test subjects in the United States that have been considered unethical, and were often performed illegally, without the knowledge, consent, or informed consent of the test subjects....
- Human radiation experimentsHuman radiation experimentsSince the discovery of ionizing radiation, a number of human radiation experiments have been performed to understand the effects of ionizing radiation and radioactive contamination on the human body, specifically with the element plutonium....
- Ruth FadenRuth FadenRuth R. Faden, M.P.H., Ph.D., is the Philip Franklin Wagley Professor of Biomedical Ethics and Executive Director of The Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics at Johns Hopkins University. She is also a Senior Research Scholar at the Kennedy Institute of Ethics, Georgetown University.She has...
External links
- Chair's Perspective on the Work of the Advisory Committee on Human Radiation Experiments by Ruth FadenRuth FadenRuth R. Faden, M.P.H., Ph.D., is the Philip Franklin Wagley Professor of Biomedical Ethics and Executive Director of The Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics at Johns Hopkins University. She is also a Senior Research Scholar at the Kennedy Institute of Ethics, Georgetown University.She has...
- Material at George Washington University Material from the National Security ArchiveNational Security ArchiveThe National Security Archive is a 501 non-governmental, non-profit research and archival institution located in the George Washington University in Washington, D.C.. Founded in 1985 by Scott Armstrong, it archives and publishes declassified U.S. government files concerning selected topics of US...
. - Advisory Committee on Human Radiation Experiments - Final Report
- American Nuclear Guinea Pigs: Three Decades of Radiation Experiments on U.S. Citizens