FDA suspends plan to close, consolidate inspection laboratories

Timing is everything. Just ask the Food and Drug Administration (FDA): The agency proposed to close seven of its thirteen labs around the country that test food and drugs for safety. Little did it know that its announcement would coinicide with a stream of daily stories about ever-growing number of contaminated, unsafe, and dangerous products — including food products — from China flooding U.S. and European markets. The agency’s cost-saving proposal evoked disbelief and outrage in equal measure, and on Wednesday FDA commissioner Andrew von Eschenbach said he was halting temporarily the agency proposal . Government Executive’s Anna Edney quotes FDA spokeswoman Julie Zawisza to say that von Eschenbach first wants to consider recommendations from a new cabinet-level import panel created by the president. The panel is scheduled to make recommendations in September.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee has been investigating FDA’s proposal to close the labs. “Not once, in the 70,000 pages of documents that our subcommittee received from the FDA, does the FDA justify why this reorganization plan makes sense from either a safety or a cost standpoint,” Energy and Commerce Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee chairman Bart Stupak (D-Michigan), said. “Whether they are closed today or 90 days from now, closing the FDA’s field labs, and consolidating the district offices, which places more power in Washington, makes no sense for America’s food safety.” Lab researchers analyze imported food tagged for inspection and help test potentially contaminated food during an emergency. A letter Energy and Commerce chairman John Dingell (D-Michigan), and Stupak sent FDA Tuesday questions whether FDA intends to close the labs so it can outsource the work to private companies. The letter says the committee just learned of a proposal to evaluate independent lab testing as an alternative to FDA testing.

“We find it inconceivable that FDA would contract out a critical program to importers, particularly in light of numerous recent incidences of harmful foods exported from other countries,” the letter states.

An internal e-mail from Margaret Glavin, FDA’s deputy commissioner for regulatory affairs, said FDA also will halt its proposal to consolidate 20 district offices into 16. “This suspension will allow us to consider our field structure in light of recommendations that may come from the president’s Interagency Working Group on Import Safety, and action items that are under consideration to improve oversight of the food supply, as well as valuable input from you, Members of Congress, and other stakeholders,” Glavin wrote staff. The House and Senate Agriculture Appropriations bills included provisions that would stop FDA from closing the labs until it proves it is necessary. Stupak plans to introduce an amendment on the House floor including more binding language that would affect the district offices.