FDA cancels plan to close field laboratories
From the Associated Press August 17, 2007
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Food and Drug Administration canceled plans Friday to close more than half its field laboratories.
The proposed closures, part of a reorganization of the agency's field operations, previously had been suspended to await recommendations from a presidential panel about how to better guarantee the safety of imported food and other products.
Congress has been investigating the plan, including whether it would give to private companies some food safety work now performed by government employees. Lawmakers also had introduced legislation to block the closures.
In a "Dear Colleagues" e-mail sent Friday, FDA regulatory affairs chief Margaret Glavin said the reorganization plan would be canceled, in part to provide a "fresh look" at the challenges facing her office and its plans for addressing them.
http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=37812&dcn=todaysnews