NIH Drops Contractor for Conflict of Interest

[Guest guest]

NIH Drops Contractor For Conflict of Interest

By Lyndsey Layton

Washington Post Staff Writer

Saturday, April 14, 2007; Page A08

The federal government yesterday fired a contractor it had hired to

review the safety of chemicals after discovering the company has been

simultaneously working for the chemical industry.

andria-based Sciences International was in the fourth year of a

$5 million, five-year contract to run the federal Center for the

Evaluation of Risks to Human Reproduction. It has reviewed 20

chemicals to date, helping the government determine whether they pose

dangers to reproduction and newborn babies.

At the same time it has been advising the federal government,

Sciences International has been on the payroll of Dow Chemical, BASF,

3M and other companies that produce some of the chemicals under

scrutiny.

The government took action after questions were raised by the

Environmental Working Group, an advocacy organization. The group

complained that Science International was reviewing bisphenol A, a

chemical widely used in plastic that has been found to cause cancer

and reproductive damage in animals. Dow Chemical and BASF, two

manufacturers of bisphenol A, have been among Science International's

clients.

Wiles, the group's executive director, said the potential

conflict of interested points to a larger problem of the federal

government delegating too much authority to private contractors.

" Protecting the public health is one of those jobs that can't be

farmed out to contractors who have huge conflicts of interest with

polluters and chemical makers, " he said.

The Center for Evaluation of Risks to Human Reproduction has a full-

time and a part-time federal employee; the rest of its workforce had

been supplied by Sciences International. Under its government

contract, the company had not been required to disclose conflicts of

interest.

Last month, the National Institutes of Health suspended Sciences

International, saying it wanted to investigate whether the company's

business interests clashed with its government duties. The

development was first reported by the Los Angeles Times.

Herman Gibb, the company's president, could not be reached for

comment yesterday. In a March 19 letter to the NIH, he acknowledged

three cases in which Sciences International was working for the

chemical companies at the same time it was reviewing their chemicals

for the federal government. But he said the company reviewed its work

and concluded that " no conflicts existed that impaired judgments or

objectivity in any of the tasks performed. "

That did not convince federal officials. " We still have some concerns

about conflict of interest, " said Dearry of the NIH, which

terminated the contract after interviewing company employees and

examining corporate client records

[Guest guest]

So, they just 'discovered' this NOW?

I think THAT is a tall story, if I ever heard one.