Multiple laboratories run by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) were repeatedly sanctioned by federal regulators said a report by USA Today on May 10.
Documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act appeal shows one of the labs had its operating permit secretly suspended in recent years for critical safety violations while working with bioterror pathogens.
The agency and the U.S. Department of Agriculture operate the bio-laboratories and both run the Federal Select Agent Program that oversees government, university, military, and private labs that work with bioterror pathogens like anthrax, plague, and Ebola.
CDC facilities are among a handful of biolab operators that have the worst regulatory histories in the United States, according to USA Today.
The report says secret actions by federal regulators against CDC labs have been taken six times since 2003 due to serious or repeated violations while working with regulated bioterror-friendly agents, including viruses, bacteria, and toxins.
