• 01
  Feb
  2012

• New Tests on Airports Scanners to Be Conducted By TSA

  
  Filed Under: Blogging
  Author: YourGuy
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For several years there has been talk about radiation from airport scanner but the Transportation Security Administration or TSA have continued to turn a blind eye to these “rumors.” That is, until this month, January 2012 when TSA finally decided to test airport security officers for radiation exposure.  Imagine being a frequent traveler, local or international and having to pass these scanners repeatedly without choice. Doesn’t it make it imperative to have international travel health insurance? Technically, you are en route to your destination so radiation exposure could be included in your international health insurance. It’s worth checking on with your provider.
It might also concern you that just last December 2011, TSA required all government vendors to have equipment that would measure radiation exposure. The spokesman for TSA, Nico Melendez said, “TSA is dedicated to the health and safety of its employees. We continuously test our technology to ensure it is safe for both passenger and our officers, and post all results to our website.”
The problems critics have with this policy of not determining radiation levels in airport scanners is that these machines can malfunction, and have done so many times in the past year alone. This implies that radiation exposure could be at a level that isn’t safe. James Babb who co-founded the group, We Won’t Fly says that, “We still have no idea how much radiation is being imposed on travelers by a properly functioning machine. A malfunctioning machine could be particularly nasty.”  This consumer rights group wants an independent body to do the tests on the machines and not just on security personnel who worked with the scanners. However, they do accept that the TSA is moving forward by recognizing that there may be a potential hazard that needs to be addressed properly.