October 14, 2002—The American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) has alerted its members that the US Department of Health and Human Services’ Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has begun a national inventory of wild poliovirus materials. The inventory process runs from October 2002 through December 31, 2002. All academic institutions, biotechnology, and pharmaceutical companies, and clinical, hospital, and government facilities must take and provide the CDC with their inventory of any poliovirus material through CDC forms being mailed and available on the CDC Web site.
Officials say that when global polio eradication is achieved within the next few years, biomedical laboratories will be the only sources of wild poliovirus, so containing the virus in the laboratory is essential to reduce the risk of inadvertent re-introduction of polio to the community. Should a crisis occur, such as a wild poliovirus transmission interruption, the CDC will then notify all laboratories to destroy all materials or implement appropriate biosafety measures.
Even if no wild poliovirus materials are retained, all institutions/laboratories must respond to the CDC by December 31, 2002. More information can be found at the Poliovirus Laboratory Containment Preparedness Web site.
