CDC anthrax scare raises worries in Congress about lab safety

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CDC anthrax scare raises worries in Congress about lab safety

By David Morgan WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A growing anthrax scare at three government laboratories is drawing scrutiny from Congress about whether the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has the appropriate safety procedures in place to protect federal employees from contamination. Oversight committees in both the Senate and the House of Representatives are weighing whether the potential exposure of 84 people to one of the deadliest strains of anthrax at CDC facilities in Atlanta could merit formal congressional hearings, aides said. One of the panels, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, is "closely monitoring" the situation and early next week "will make a formal request to CDC Director Tom Frieden for additional follow-up information," said Allison Preiss, a spokeswoman for Democratic Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa, the panel's chairman. The CDC said it will cede control of the investigation to the U.S. Department of Agriculture "to avoid potential conflicts of interest." Lawmakers and aides say the breach is only the latest problem involving safety protocols intended to protect agency employees and visitors at a bioterror lab on the CDC campus, known as Building 18.

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