HIGH CONTAINMENT LABORATORIES: Coordinated Efforts Needed to Further Strengthen Oversight of Select Agents

Abstract

Laboratories conduct research on hazardous pathogens--such as Ebola virus or anthrax bacteria--in more than 200 labs in the United States. Safety lapses have occurred at some of these labs, raising concerns about whether oversight is effective. For this testimony, we looked at the Federal Select Agent Program, which is responsible for overseeing these labs, and found room for improvement. For example, the program allows some agencies to oversee their own labs, which could potentially lead to conflicts of interest. In the report on which this testimony is based, we recommended 11 actions to improve oversight.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Nov 02, 2017
Accession Number
AD1163102

Entities

People

  • Mary Denigan-macauley

Organizations

  • United States Government Accountability Office

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accountability
  • Congress
  • Department Of Defense
  • Diseases And Disorders
  • Ebola Virus
  • Electronic Mail
  • Energy
  • Governments
  • Health
  • Health Care
  • Homeland Security
  • House Of Representatives
  • Inspection
  • National Governments
  • Nuclear Energy
  • Pathogenic Bacteria
  • Program Management
  • Public Health
  • Risk
  • Safety
  • Safety Equipment
  • Security
  • Standards
  • Training
  • United States
  • United States Government

Readers

  • Defense Acquisition Program Management
  • Infectious Disease/Epidemiology