Title 42 — The Public Health and WelfareRelease 119-73
§289g–3 Breast implant research
Title 42 › Chapter CHAPTER 6A— - PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER III— - NATIONAL RESEARCH INSTITUTES › Part Part H— - General Provisions › § 289g–3
Summary
The NIH Director may do or fund studies on the health effects over time of silicone breast implants, including both gel- and saline-filled types. Research can include making tests to detect silicone in blood or tissues and tracking implant recipients for long-term results and local problems. "Breast implant" means a prosthesis put in to enlarge or rebuild the female breast.
Full Legal Text
Title 42, §289g–3
The Public Health and Welfare — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)The Director of NIH may conduct or support research to examine the long-term health implications of silicone breast implants, both gel and saline filled. Such research studies may include the following:
(1)Developing and examining techniques to measure concentrations of silicone in body fluids and tissues.
(2)Surveillance of recipients of silicone breast implants, including long-term outcomes and local complications.
(b)For purposes of this section, the term “breast implant” means a breast prosthesis that is implanted to augment or reconstruct the female breast.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Breast Implants; Study by Comptroller General Pub. L. 107–250, title II, § 214, Oct. 26, 2002, 116 Stat. 1615, which provided that the Comptroller General was to conduct a study of information typically provided by health professionals to women on breast implant surgery and to report the findings of the study to Congress, was repealed by Pub. L. 111–8, div. G, title I, § 1301(g), Mar. 11, 2009, 123 Stat. 829.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
42 U.S.C. § 289g–3
Title 42 — The Public Health and Welfare
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73