The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) is a federal public health agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The agency focuses on minimizing human health risks associated with exposure to hazardous substances. It works closely with other federal, state, and local agencies; tribal governments; local communities; and healthcare providers. Its mission is to "Serve the public through responsive public health actions to promote healthy and safe environments and prevent harmful exposures." ATSDR was created as an advisory, nonregulatory agency by the Superfund legislation and was formally organized in 1985.
Although ATSDR is an independent operating agency within HHS, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) performs many of its administrative functions. The CDC director also serves as the ATSDR administrator, and ATSDR has a joint Office of the Director with the National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH). The ATSDR headquarters are located in Atlanta, Georgia, at the CDC Chamblee campus. In fiscal year 2010, ATSDR had an operating budget of $76.8 million and had roughly 300 full-time employees (not including contractors).
The ATSDR is formally and administratively overseen by the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), currently Jay Bhattacharya since February 2026. Direction is provided by ATSDR's Director, currently Aaron Bernstein, who ranks below the Administrator, and Deputy Director Pamela Protzel Berman.
Overview ATSDR is an agency within the US Department of Health and Human Services concerned with the effects of hazardous substances on human health. ATSDR is charged with assessing the presence and nature of health hazards at specific Superfund sites, as well as helping prevent or reduce further exposure and the illnesses that can result from such exposures. ATSDR is an oversight agency created to ensure that public health protection and environmental regulation work hand in hand.
ATSDR functions include public health assessments of National Priority List (NPL or Superfund) hazardous waste sites; petitioned health consultations or assessments concerning specific waste sites or industrial facilities that US citizens have requested further action upon; the conduct of health studies (including surveillance and registries) to determine the long-term impact of these facilities; response to emergency releases of hazardous substances, applied research in support of public health assessments, information development and dissemination, and education and training concerning hazardous substances. ATSDR also prepares toxicological profiles for hazardous substances found at National Priorities List sites, as well as at federal sites administered by the Department of Defense and Department of Energy.
Goals ATSDR has seven goals: Protect the public from environmental hazards and toxic exposures. Promote healthy environments. Advance the science of environmental public health. Support environmental public health practice. Educate communities, partners, and policy makers about environmental health risks and protective measures. Promote environmental justice and reduce health disparities associated with environmental exposures. Provide unique scientific and technical expertise to advance public health science and practice.
Authority Unlike the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), ATSDR is an advisory, nonregulatory agency. ATSDR conducts research on the health impacts of hazardous waste sites and provides information and recommendations to federal and state agencies, community members, and other interested parties. However, ATSDR is not involved in cleanup of those sites, nor can ATSDR provide or fund medical treatment for people who have been exposed to hazardous substances.
History
In response to the environmental disasters at Love Canal and Times Beach, Missouri, Congress passed the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA), commonly known as the Superfund legislation. CERCLA gave EPA primary responsibility for identifying, investigating, and cleaning up hazardous waste sites. CERCLA also authorized the establishment of ATSDR to assess the presence and nature of health hazards to communities living near Superfund sites, to help prevent or reduce harmful exposures, and to expand the knowledge base about the health effects that result from exposure to hazardous substances.
A 1982 lawsuit litigated by Chemical Manufacturers Association and the American Petroleum Institute forced the creation of ATSDR, which was created as an agency under the Department of Health and Human Services on April 19, 1983. James O. Mason served as the agency's first administrator. The Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984 to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) gave ATSDR additional authority related to hazardous waste storage facilities. ATSDR was charged with conducting public health assessments at these sites when requested by EPA, states, or individuals, as well as assisting EPA to determine which substances should be regulated and the levels at which chemicals may pose a threat to human health. ATSDR was formally organized as an agency on June 11, 1985. The Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 (SARA) broadened ATSDR's responsibilities in the areas of public health assessments, establishment and maintenance of toxicological databases, information dissemination, and medical education.
In 2003, the position of assistant administrator was replaced with a director who is shared with NCEH.
Organization
Administration CDC Director Jay Bhattacharya, M.D., Ph.D. serves as ATSDR administrator and CDC director, heading the Office of the Administrator. Aaron Bernstein, M.D., M.P.H serves as director of NCEH/ATSDR, heading the Office of the Director. The ATSDR administrator/CDC director, who provides overall leadership of the agency, is appointed by the president of the United States; the appointment does not require Senate approval. The ATSDR administrator appoints the NCEH/ATSDR director, who is responsible for managing the agency's programs and activities.
Organizational structure Office of the Administrator (also CDC Director) Office of the Director and deputy director (also NCEH (National Center for Environmental Health) head) Office of Communications Office of Science Office of Management and Analytics Office of Policy, Partnerships, and Planning Office of the Associate Director Office of Innovation and Analytics (OIA) Office of Community Health Hazard Assessment (OCHHA) Office of Capacity Development and Applied Prevention Science (OCDAPS)
The Office of the Director (of ASTDR) is joint with that of NCEH; it also contains seven functional units, five offices, five program-specific divisions to support and implement six program areas:
Public Health Assessments Toxicological Profiles Emergency Response Exposure and Disease Registries Health Effects Research Health Education
Regional offices The Division of Community Health Investigations manages an office in Washington, D.C., as well as offices in each of the 10 EPA regions:
Boston (Region 1: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont) New York and Edison, New Jersey (Region 2: New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands) Philadelphia (Region 3: Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia) Atlanta (Region 4: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee) Chicago (Region 5: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin) Dallas (Region 6: Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas) Kansas City, Kansas (Region 7: Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska) Denver and Helena, Montana (Region 8: Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming) San Francisco (Region 9: American Samoa, Arizona, California, Guam, Hawaii, Nevada, Northern Mariana Islands, Trust Territories) Seattle and Anchorage, Alaska (Region 10: Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington) The regional offices work cooperatively with EPA, state and local health departments, health professionals, community groups, and other partners to implement programs and initiatives.
Programs Public health assessments and health consultations One of ATSDR's primary responsibilities is conducting public health assessments and health consultations. The agency conducts public health assessments for all current or proposed sites on the National Priorities List (commonly known as Superfund sites). The purpose of public health assessments is to examine whether hazardous substances at a site pose a human health hazard and to issue recommendations about limiting or stopping exposure to those substances. ATSDR also conducts health consultations, often in response to requests from EPA and state and local agencies. Health consultations examine specific health questions, such as the health effects of exposure to a specific chemical at a site. Health consultations are more limited in scope than public health assessments. ATSDR also conducts public health assessments and health consultations in response to petitions from members of the public. To conduct public health assessments and health consultations, ATSDR relies on its own scientists or establishes cooperative agreements with states, providing technical assistance to state health departments. ATSDR issued more than 200 public health assessments in 2009 and provides about 1,000 health consultations each year.
When investigating sites, ATSDR examines environmental data, health data, and information from community members about how the site affects their quality of life. ATSDR normally does not collect its own environmental data; rather, it usually relies on partner organizations, such as EPA, to conduct testing and gather data. This environmental data provides information on the amount of contamination and possible ways humans could be exposed to the hazardous substances at the site. The health data provides information on rates of illness, disease, and death in the local community. Since ATSDR is an advisory agency, the conclusions in its public health assessments and health consultations are often in the form of recommendations to state and national environmental and health agencies, such as EPA, that have regulatory authority. Other agencies and the general public rely on ATSDR to provide trusted information on the health effects of hazardous substances at contaminated sites.
Toxicology research Another major responsibility of ATSDR is producing toxicological profiles for the most common substances that are found at Superfund sites. The toxicological profiles summarize important studies on the substances' health effects. ATSDR also publishes ToxFAQs, ToxGuides, and public health statements, which summarize the health information in toxicological profiles for use by the general public and health professionals. The agency maintains a Toxic Substances Portal that compiles all of the agency's toxicology information and allows users to search by chemical. ATSDR has published toxicological profiles for more than 250 hazardous substances.