FEMA Trying To Quash Toxic Trailer Lawsuits
By
Associated Press
Published: Sat, February 09, 2008 - 10:01 pm
Last Updated: Sat, February 09, 2008 - 10:06 pm
Last Updated: Sat, February 09, 2008 - 10:06 pm
ATLANTA (AP) - A congressional panel is probing whether the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suppressed information
about cancer dangers in trailers housing Hurricane Katrina victims
and if the agency retaliated against the scientist who sought to
make those risks public.
"The agency's conduct has called into question its ability to
investigate public health hazards accurately and appropriately in
the future," wrote the chairman and two subcommittee chairmen from
the House Committee on Science and Technology in a letter to CDC
Director Julie Gerberding dated Wednesday.
The letter also urged Gerberding to protect scientist
Christopher De Rosa, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
which reported the story on Saturday.
"Apparently in retaliation, Dr. De Rosa was removed from his
post and given a job...that appears to include no real
responsibilities," the letter reads.
De Rosa was formerly head of the division of toxicology and
environmental medicine in CDC's Agency for Toxic Substances and
Disease Registry, a position he held since 1992. Last fall, he was
removed from that job and given the title "special assistant" -
which he told the newspaper he considers a demotion.
CDC spokesman Glen Nowak denied the allegations to The Atlanta
Journal-Constitution.
"The integrity of CDC's science is paramount to everything we
do," Nowak said.
The investigation centers on whether the CDC intentionally
delayed or avoided examining the long-term cancer threat posed by
formaldehyde fumes in trailers purchased by the Federal Management
Agency to house victims of the August 2005 hurricane.
FEMA has said that air quality in the trailers was safe if they
were properly ventilated. Some studies have linked exposure to
formaldehyde - a colorless gas with a pungent smell used in the
production of plywood and resins - with nose and throat cancer.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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