This is not just a public-health oversight. It is a health-equity emergency. The science is clear. The solutions exist. What remains missing is political will.
Meaningful radon reform requires coordinated action across four levels: homes, communities, industry, and policy.
1. Home-Level Change: Testing Without Support Is Not a Strategy
Millions of test kits are distributed annually, yet there is no national mechanism to ensure families can afford mitigation — even when levels are dangerously high or a homeowner is battling lung cancer. Programs like CR3’s Radon Community Mitigation Fund demonstrate what is possible, but philanthropy cannot carry a national burden.
Mitigation must be treated like mold remediation or lead abatement: a covered environmental - health intervention supported by insurers, state agencies, and federal programs.
Today’s housing stock also requires updated mitigation standards that ensure compliance with radon-resistant building codes during construction is utilized.
Most families never retest after mitigation. Many don’t know systems need maintenance or that fans can fail. Mandatory follow-up testing, annual reminders, and instructions would significantly improve long-term protection.
Community-Level Change: Protecting the Most Vulnerable
Radon does not impact all communities equally. It disproportionately affects neighborhoods already burdened by environmental injustice.
Low-income communities, rural areas, tribal nations, and manufactured home parks face high exposure and limited access to mitigation. These areas need:
Free mitigation funds
Community navigators
On-site testing with follow-up support
Partnerships with churches, schools, libraries, and clinics
Health equity begins with meeting people where they are.
Healthcare integration is equally critical. Radon rarely appears in routine clinical conversations or patient intake processes, despite being a known carcinogen.
A modern approach requires:
Electronic Medical Record prompts asking, “Have you tested your home for radon?”
Provider toolkits and survivor-led education
Insurance coverage for testing and mitigation
Radon must become a standard part of lung-health dialogue.
Industry-Level Change: Expand the Workforce, Modernize the Tools
The United States does not have enough certified radon mitigators—especially in underserved regions. Workforce development must include:
Apprenticeships in environmental-justice communities
Scholarships and training incentives
Contractor programs serving low-income neighborhoods
Youth STEM pipelines like CR3’s Premier Youth Ambassadors for Radon Reduction (PYA)
Homeowners may pay anywhere from $1500 to $3,000, often with little clarity. Innovation must also accelerate. Modern mitigation should include:
Smart technology
A national “Radon System Registry” to track installation and compliance
Modern problems require modern tools.
Policy-Level Change: A National Framework That Matches the Science
Radon policy in the U.S. is fragmented and outdated. Many states lack basic testing requirements, while others have no active radon program at all.
A modern framework must include:
Mandatory Testing
Required in:
Schools
Childcare centers
Rentals
Nursing homes
Real estate transactions
Healthcare facilities
Children, elders, and medically vulnerable individuals deserve protection.
Mandatory Mitigation Funding
Testing without financial support leaves vulnerable families at risk. States should adopt:
Mitigation vouchers
Insurance incentives
Tax credits
Utility-bill financing
National Public-Health Standards
A coordinated radon strategy across CDC, HUD, and EPA is long overdue, with radon recognized formally as a public-health and health-equity priority.
Centralized Information Access
Families, clinicians, policymakers, and organizations need a trusted, unified source for radon guidance—exactly the gap CR3’s CLEHR Network was created to fill.
Radon Reform Is Possible—If We Choose It
The risk of radon-related lung cancer can be minimized by ensuring widespread access to radon testing and reliable mitigation services. The solutions exist. The technology is ready. Communities are calling for help.
What we lack is a unified national strategy—one that connects home-level solutions, community protections, healthcare integration, industry capacity, and strong policy.
We stand at a crossroads: continue allowing the continued risk of this carcinogen to claim lives, or build the comprehensive radon response the nation urgently needs.
Families deserve better. Communities deserve protection. And America deserves a radon strategy worthy of the lives it can save.
We already have the knowledge.
We already have the solutions.
Now we need the will.
It’s Time to Modernize America’s Radon Response — From the Basement to Capitol Hill
For decades, the United States has treated radon as a homeowner’s problem instead of a national public-health priority. Yet radon—the leading cause of lung cancer among people who have never smoked — seeps into millions of homes every year. We distribute test kits and urge families to “just test,” but when high results come back, most households — especially those already facing medical or financial hardship—discover there is no sustainable system to help them fix the problem
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This is not just a public-health oversight. It is a health-equity emergency. The science is clear. The solutions exist. What remains missing is political will.
Meaningful radon reform requires coordinated action across four levels: homes, communities, industry, and policy.
Home-Level Change: Testing Without Support Is Not a Strategy
Millions of test kits are distributed annually, yet there is no national mechanism to ensure families can afford mitigation—even when levels are dangerously high or a homeowner is battling lung cancer. Programs like CR3’s Radon Community Mitigation Fund demonstrate what is possible, but philanthropy cannot carry a national burden.
Mitigation must be treated like mold remediation or lead abatement: a covered environmental - health intervention supported by insurers, state agencies, and federal programs.
Today’s housing stock also requires updated mitigation standards. Modern homes may need:
Multi-point suction
Energy-efficient fans
Vapor barriers in crawlspaces
Better sealing and depressurization
Quieter, more acceptable system designs
Yet most families never retest after mitigation. Many don’t know systems need maintenance or that fans can fail. Mandatory follow-up testing, annual reminders, and QR-coded instructions would significantly improve long-term protection.
Community-Level Change: Protecting the Most Vulnerable
Radon does not impact all communities equally. It disproportionately affects neighborhoods already burdened by environmental injustice.
Low-income communities, rural areas, tribal nations, and manufactured home parks face high exposure and limited access to mitigation. These areas need:
Free mitigation funds
Community navigators
On-site testing with follow-up support
Partnerships with churches, schools, libraries, and clinics
Health equity begins with meeting people where they are.
Healthcare integration is equally critical. Radon rarely appears in routine clinical conversations or patient intake processes, despite being a known carcinogen.
A modern approach requires:
Electronic Medical Record prompts asking, “Have you tested your home for radon?”
Provider toolkits and survivor-led education
Insurance coverage for testing and mitigation
Radon must become a standard part of lung-health dialogue.
Industry-Level Change: Expand the Workforce, Modernize the Tools
The United States does not have enough certified radon mitigators—especially in underserved regions. Workforce development must include:
Apprenticeships in environmental-justice communities
Scholarships and training incentives
Contractor programs serving low-income neighborhoods
Youth STEM pipelines like CR3’s Premier Youth Ambassadors for Radon Reduction (PYA)
Homeowners may pay anywhere from $1500 to $3,000, often with little clarity. Innovation must also accelerate. Modern mitigation should include:
Smart technology
A national “Radon System Registry” to track installation and compliance
Modern problems require modern tools.
Policy-Level Change: A National Framework That Matches the Science
Radon policy in the U.S. is fragmented and outdated. Many states lack basic testing requirements, while others have no active radon program at all.
A modern framework must include:
Mandatory Testing
Required in:
Schools
Childcare centers
Rentals
Nursing homes
Real estate transactions
Healthcare facilities
Children, elders, and medically vulnerable individuals deserve protection.
Mandatory Mitigation Funding
Testing without financial support leaves vulnerable families at risk. States should adopt:
Mitigation vouchers
Insurance incentives
Tax credits
Utility-bill financing
National Public-Health Standards
A coordinated radon strategy across CDC, HUD, and EPA is long overdue, with radon recognized formally as a public-health and health-equity priority.
Centralized Information Access
Families, clinicians, policymakers, and organizations need a trusted, unified source for radon guidance—exactly the gap CR3’s CLEHR Network was created to fill.
Radon Reform Is Possible—If We Choose It
The risk of radon-related lung cancer can be minimized by ensuring widespread access to radon testing and reliable mitigation services. The solutions exist. The technology is ready. Communities are calling for help.
What we lack is a unified national strategy—one that connects home-level solutions, community protections, healthcare integration, industry capacity, and strong policy.
We stand at a crossroads: continue allowing the continued risk of this carcinogen to claim lives, or build the comprehensive radon response the nation urgently needs.
Families deserve better. Communities deserve protection. And America deserves a radon strategy worthy of the lives it can save.
We already have the knowledge.
We already have the solutions.
Now we need the will.