(1) Molybdenum-99 is a critical medical isotope 
whose decay product technecium-99m is used in ap-
proximately two-thirds of all diagnostic medical iso-
tope procedures in the United States, or 16 million 
medical procedures annually, including for the detec-
tion of cancer, heart disease, and thyroid disease, in-
vestigating the operation of the brain and kidney, 
imaging stress fractures, and tracking cancer stages. 
(2) Molybdenum-99 has a half-life of 66 hours, 
and decays at a rate of approximately one percent 
per hour after production. As such, molybdenum-99 
cannot be stockpiled. Instead, molybdenum-99 pro-
duction must be scheduled to meet the projected de-
mand and any interruption of the supply chain from 
production, to processing, packaging, distribution, 
and use can disrupt patient care. 
(3) There are no facilities within the United 
States that are dedicated to the production of mo-
lybdenum-99 for medical uses. The United States 
must import molybdenum-99 from foreign produc-
tion facilities, and is dependent upon the continued 
operation of these foreign facilities for millions of 
critical medical procedures annually. 
(4) Most reactors in the world which produce 
molybdenum-99 utilize highly enriched uranium, 
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which can also be used in the construction of nuclear 
weapons. In January 2009, the National Academy of 
Sciences encouraged molybdenum-99 producers to 
convert from highly enriched uranium to low en-
riched uranium, and found that there are ‘‘no tech-
nical reasons that adequate quantities cannot be 
produced from LEU targets in the future’’ and that 
‘‘a 7-10 year phase-out period would likely allow 
enough time for all current HEU-based producers to 
convert’’. 
(5) The 51-year-old National Research Uni-
versal reactor in Canada, which is responsible for 
producing approximately sixty percent of United 
States demand for molybdenum-99 under normal 
conditions, was shut down unexpectedly May 14, 
2009, after the discovery of a leak of radioactive 
water. It is unclear whether the National Research 
Universal reactor will be able to resume production 
of molybdenum-99. 
(6) The United States currently faces an acute 
shortage of molybdenum-99 and its decay product 
technetium-99m due to technical problems which 
have seriously interrupted operations of foreign nu-
clear reactors producing molybdenum-99. 
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(7) As a result of the critical shortage of molyb-
denum-99, patient care in the United States is suf-
fering. Medical procedures requiring technetium-99 
are being rationed or delayed, and alternative treat-
ments which are less effective, more costly, and may 
result in increased radiation doses to patients are 
being substituted in lieu of technetium-99. 
(8) The radioactive isotope molybdenum-99 and 
its decay product technetium-99m are critical to the 
health care of Americans, and the continued avail-
ability of these isotopes, in a reliable and affordable 
manner, is in the interest of the United States. 
(9) The United States should move expedi-
tiously to ensure that an adequate and reliable sup-
ply of molybdenum-99 can be produced in the 
United States, without the use of highly enriched 
uranium. 
(10) The United States should accelerate its ef-
forts to convert nuclear reactors worldwide away 
from the use of highly enriched uranium, which can 
be used in nuclear weapons, to low enriched ura-
nium. Converting nuclear reactors away from the 
use of highly enriched uranium is a critically impor-
tant element of United States efforts to prevent nu-
clear terrorism, and supports the goal announced in 
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Prague by President Barack Obama on April 5, 
2009, to create ‘‘a new international effort to secure 
all vulnerable nuclear material around the world 
within four years’’. 
SEC. 3. IMPROVING THE RELIABILITY OF DOMESTIC MED-
ICAL ISOTOPE SUPPLY. 
(a) MEDICAL ISOTOPE DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary of Energy 
shall establish a program to evaluate and support 
projects for the production in the United States, 
without the use of highly enriched uranium, of sig-
nificant quantities of molybdenum-99 for medical 
uses. 
(2) CRITERIA.—Projects shall be judged against 
the following primary criteria: 
(A) The length of time necessary for the 
proposed project to begin production of molyb-
denum-99 for medical uses within the United 
States. 
(B) The capability of the proposed project 
to produce a significant percentage of United 
States demand for molybdenum-99 for medical 
uses. 
(C) The cost of the proposed project. 
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(3) EXEMPTION.—An existing reactor fueled 
with highly enriched uranium shall not be disquali-
fied from the program if the Secretary of Energy de-
termines that— 
(A) there is no alternative nuclear reactor 
fuel, enriched in the isotope U-235 to less than 
20 percent, that can be used in that reactor; 
and 
(B) the reactor operator has provided as-
surances that, whenever an alternative nuclear 
reactor fuel, enriched in the isotope U-235 to 
less than 20 percent, can be used in that reac-
tor, it will use that alternative in lieu of highly 
enriched uranium. 
(4) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.— 
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
retary of Energy for carrying out the program under 
paragraph (1) $163,000,000 for fiscal years 2010 
through 2014. 
(b) DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary of 
Energy shall establish a program to provide assistance 
for— 
(1) the development of fuels, targets, and proc-
esses for domestic molybdenum-99 production that 
do not use highly enriched uranium; and 
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