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Notice to Readers: Status Report on CDC Laboratory Animal
Care Accreditation
CDC conducts vital animal research to understand and
ultimately prevent viral, mycotic, bacterial, and other diseases
that threaten populations worldwide. CDC has a moral and ethical responsibility to humanely care for the animals
that contribute to this research.
Since 1967, CDC has participated in and received accreditation from the Association for Assessment and Accreditation
of Laboratory Animal Care International (AAALAC) program. This accreditation process is an added safeguard to ensure
ethical and humane treatment and care of the animals entrusted to the agency for participation in its research programs.
In late 2005, AAALAC conducted a review of CDC's
research programs and laboratories for conducting animal
research and noted certain areas in need of improvement,
including the policies and procedures of CDC's Institutional Animal Care
and Use Committee. AAALAC issued recommendations for raising the quality of animal care at CDC and enhancing
worker safety. As a result of the AAALAC findings, CDC's accreditation was placed on probationary status.
In response to this review, CDC conducted it own investigation. Subsequently, during 2006, CDC upgraded its
laboratory research facilities, improved the electronic records management system for its animal care program, and hired additional
staff members to carry out the oversight and record-keeping functions required for the animal care and use program. In
addition, CDC changed lines of authority and responsibility to ensure impartial and credible oversight,
including moving oversight for the animal care and use program to the Office of the Director, putting it on equal standing with oversight for human
subjects research, and assigning three veterinarians and two animal caretakers with independent access to the agency's Biosafety Level
4 laboratory.
In late October 2006, a five-member panel from AAALAC conducted a follow-up site visit to CDC's Atlanta campus;
the official report is pending. CDC expects a full report from AAALAC in early 2007. Additional information regarding
CDC's animal research facilities, practices, and electronic records management systems is available at
http://www.cdc.gov/od/science/regs/acup.
Use of trade names and commercial sources is for identification only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services.References to non-CDC sites on the Internet are
provided as a service to MMWR readers and do not constitute or imply
endorsement of these organizations or their programs by CDC or the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services. CDC is not responsible for the content
of pages found at these sites. URL addresses listed in MMWR were current as of
the date of publication.
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