Congress Seeks Details On Sanctioned Research Labs

Several members of the House of Representatives’ Energy & Commerce Committee have asked federal regulators to provide details about research labs that have been fined or faced other sanctions for safety violations while working with “select agents.” That’s the government’s term for viruses and bacteria that could be used by terrorists. In a letter to the Department of Health & Human Services inspector general, the members say they are “examining the adequacy of federal select agent oversight” in the wake of recent revelations that an Army lab in Utah mistakenly sent live anthrax, instead of killed specimens, to labs in the U.S. and abroad for 10 years. The letter also notes that an investigation by USA Today, published in May, found that since 2003 the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention had referred 79 labs for potential enforcement actions and that more than $2.5 million in fines had been levied against 19 entities. “So far we’ve been lucky, but that luck may run out if we don’t get the system fixed,” says Rep. Frank Pallone of New Jersey, the committee’s top Democrat.