Federal Partners Align on Nation’s Future Isotope Needs

With the growing need for medical isotopes, quantum materials, radioisotope power supplies and more, representatives from key federal agencies came together on Sept. 17, 2026, for The USG Nuclear and Medical Isotope Coordination Meeting focused on strengthening synchronization across the government around the nation’s current and future isotope needs. 

Hosted by RAND Corporation and the Critical Minerals Forum, the meeting was developed with support from the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Isotope R&D and Production (IRP), within the Office of Science, and Office of Environmental Management.

Discussions focused on federal isotope needs for critical missions and identifying the challenges and opportunities to meet those needs, including defining the government-wide demand signal and better aligning federal needs with industry capabilities and available resources.

A DOE panel highlighted how the Department is working across its programs to strengthen isotope availability and support national missions. Panelists included Christopher Landers, Director of the Office of Isotope R&D and Production; Rosa Elmetti, federal program manager for nuclear materials and used nuclear fuel in the Office of Environmental Management; and Tim Beville, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Infrastructure Programs in the Office of Nuclear Energy. 

“Ensuring a robust isotope enterprise across the Federal government and private industry is critical as we enter a new, and exciting period of scientific innovation and medical discovery,” Landers said. “Bringing this community together strengthens our ability to anticipate demand and connect emerging needs with the right resources and capabilities, where the Office of Isotope R&D and Production is the tip of the spear for ensuring a secure American isotope ecosystem.”

The panel highlighted DOE capabilities, priorities and opportunities to maximize resources across the Department, including legacy nuclear materials.

“A strong, unified demand signal helps us identify opportunities to put legacy materials and existing capabilities to work for the nation,” Elmetti said. “By connecting those resources with emerging needs, we can turn yesterday’s liabilities into assets for tomorrow’s missions and deliver the isotopes the nation needs, when they are needed.”

While DOE representatives came from across the Department to detail what DOE can provide, representatives from key elements of the Federal government came to discuss their needs, challenges, and opportunities for their federal priorities. Representatives from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, multiple programs within NASA and the Department of War, the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Geological Survey, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and other representatives from federal agencies and supporting organizations came together to join to contribute to new strategies, identifying choke points, and discuss demand aggregation for federal priorities in isotopes.

This meeting is part of a broader effort to align isotope capabilities with current and future U.S. government mission needs while strengthening the domestic isotope enterprise and supporting the nation’s nuclear industrial base.

EM, NE, and other DOE offices will continue supporting the effort to connect federal mission needs with the capabilities needed to deliver them.

For isotope-related inquiries, please email contact@isotopes.gov with questions, comments, or concerns. For information about isotopes available through DOE’s National Isotope Development Center, visit isotopes.gov.