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Thousands of Urine and Tissue Samples Are in Danger of Rotting After Staff Cuts at a CDC Laboratory
Workers who recently lost their jobs at the National Institute for Occupational Safety say they’re concerned that there’s no plan for managing biological samples tied to research projects.
Seven federal workers who abruptly lost their jobs in recent weeks say they are worried that thousands of biological samples—from human urine to frozen rodent organs —may be left to rot in a government laboratory in West Virginia. Two Morgantown researchers—who like others in this story, asked to remain anonymous to avoid professional repercussions—say that their laid off colleagues were also researching how agricultural workers are impacted by inhaling dust from hemp plants, and a possible link between exposure to chemical disinfectants and asthma. Even before the recent reduction in force, Mandler and two other laid off researchers say that a federal spending freeze ordered by the Trump administration in January had reduced the Morgantown facility’s supply of liquid nitrogen to “critical” levels.
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