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By Alison Young, USA TODAY
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is considering having U.S. Army scientists or another outside agency inspect its bioterror labs in the wake of a USA TODAY report this month.
The agency plans to install safety equipment to address fire code violations from December 2010 that could trap workers in an emergency, an agency spokesman said Monday.
USA TODAY reported that the agency’s $214 million Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratory in Atlanta has had repeated problems with airflow systems designed to prevent the release of infectious agents. The lab, also called Building 18, has a secure, high-containment block where experiments can be done on anthrax, monkeypox, dangerous strains of flu and other agents that have the potential to be used as bioterror weapons.
Monday, the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee launched a bipartisan investigation and sent the CDC a letter calling for documents and e-mails relating to safety issues in the lab building to be submitted by July 6. The committee is investigating whether the CDC is complying with federal lab safety requirements.
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