News

Dec 05, 2023

Applications open for NNSA medical isotope production program

After doling out $62 million in fiscal year 2022 for establishing a domestic supply of the medical isotope molybdenum-99, the Department of Energy has zeroed out funding for cooperative agreements

After doling out $62 million in fiscal year 2022 for establishing a domestic supply of the medical isotope molybdenum-99, the Department of Energy has zeroed out funding for cooperative agreements with companies that can do the work without using highly enriched uranium.

At least $62 million was payed out through the program in fiscal year 2022, but no funding was allocated for it in 2023 and none is yet earmarked in 2024, according to the notice DOE posted online last week. A National Nuclear Security Administration spokesperson said the notice was essentially an announcement that the program has been shut down.

Molybdenum-99 decays into technetium-99, commonly used for medical diagnostic procedures. The byproduct’s primary uses include diagnosing heart disease and cancer and studying organ structure and function.

In the past, the National Nuclear Security Administration has given a number of U.S. companies financial aid to produce molybdenum-99, including SHINE Medical Technologies, Janesville, Wis., and NorthStar Medical technologies, Beloit, Wis.

Historically, the isotope was made abroad with highly enriched uranium. In 2021, the Department of Energy effectively ended imports of Mo-99 from foreign manufacturers and subsequently said U.S. companies could start producing commercial quantities of the isotope in 2023.

Beginning In 2012, Congress passed the American Medical Isotopes Production Act, which through the National Nuclear Security Administration, competitively awards 50/50 cost-shared cooperative agreements to commercial entities and providing funds to the DOE National Laboratories to support the development of molybdenum-99 production technologies without the use of highly enriched uranium (HEU).