June 6, 2009 will mark the 20th anniversary of Sacramento voters going to the polls to shut down Rancho Seco, a nuclear power plant operated by the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) about 25 miles southeast of the city. It was the first and only time voters shut down a nuclear power plant – but it has been called the “shot heard round the world” since it echoes to this day.

PSR expresses its appreciation to representatives Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Ed Markey (D-MA) and other members for their leadership in moving a comprehensive energy and climate bill, H.R. 2454, through the House Energy and Commerce Committee. However, in order to protect public health from the most catastrophic impacts of global warming, PSR is calling for significant improvements in the bill to make it more effective.

Testifying today before the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Dr. Peter Wilk, Executive Director for PSR, called on the agency to move forward quickly with regulations to control the emissions of greenhouse gases that are contributing to global warming and creating a serious public health threat.

In 2008 the Congress established a bipartisan commission to review the strategic posture of the United States. The commission's findings released today lack the vision necessary to begin immediate and sharp reductions in nuclear weapons by all states that possess them.

Today the Environmental Protection Agency made an endangerment finding regarding the emission of greenhouse gases that cause global warming. The finding, a requirement of the Clean Air Act recently upheld by the Supreme Court, makes it clear that greenhouse gas emissions must be regulated in order to control global warming and protect human health.

During their recent meeting in London, President Barack Obama engaged Russian President Dmitri Medvedev in groundbreaking efforts to achieve “a nuclear [weapons] free world.” PSR applauds the presidents of both countries for their commitment to this essential goal. In his speech in Prague on Sunday, April 5, President Obama went on to lay out a bold agenda to turn that goal into reality.

Medical students and health professionals from around the nation and the world will be gathering in New York City this April for a groundbreaking conference on how health professionals can help heal our planet. The Student PSR 2009 National Conference, Prescription for a Healthy and Secure Planet, will take place from April 3rd 5th at Mount Sinai School of Medicine.

Today President Obama signed the Fiscal Year 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act, H.R. 1105, which continues the policy shift away from the build up of nuclear weapons and toward efforts to stabilize U.S. relations throughout the world.

Today the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Fiscal Year 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act, H.R. 1105, and continued the policy shift away from the build up of nuclear weapons and toward efforts to stabilize U.S. relations throughout the world.

PSR applauds the efforts of conferees to strip unnecessary funding from the stimulus bill -- The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act -- while promoting cleaner energy choices that will help to reduce the pollutants impacting America’s health. In particular PSR opposed funding for dirty and dangerous energy sources like coal and nuclear power.

While the need to move forward with an economic stimulus plan is evident, Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) points out that billions of dollars in the Senate draft for the stimulus package The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, S 336 - will be wasted on dirty and dangerous energy sources, particularly coal and nuclear power.

Boston PSR Chapter joins in releasing new report that shows risks of developing Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases can be dramatically reduced.

Survey among science and health advocates reveals toxic chemical exposure crisis in America

PSR condemns the inadequate effort by the EPA to establish new lead levels that are adequately protective of the public health.

Yesterday, PSR and a coalition of environmental and peace organizations asked a federal court to stop the moving of a nuclear weapon production facility because the government agencies involved refused to consider the significant environmental impacts of the move.

New final public health radiation standards for the proposed nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain in Nevada don’t meet long held or scientific standards for safety and appear to have been pushed out in the closing months of the Bush administration, PSR charged today. The new standards for the proposed high-level radioactive waste dump were released yesterday.

During the Presidential Primaries the question was raised of which candidate is most ready for the “3 AM phone call.” As the Presidential contenders prepare for the September 26 debate on national security, a more immediate question is who is prepared to address the fact that the Doomsday Clock is set at five minutes to midnight?

Dr. Catherine Thomasson, former president of Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR), joined with others today in urging the Congress to set the stage for peaceful negotiations with Iran and decried the increasingly belligerent posturing by the administration.

In June the U.S. Senate will begin debate on legislation to address global warming. The Climate Security Act, S. 3036 fails to meet the scientific targets that will be necessary to avoid the worst affects of climate change.

While acknowledging the need to restrict the levels of lead allowed in air emissions, the EPA today failed, again, to utilize the best available science by proposing a rule that would allow children to be exposed to harmful levels of lead.