The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has secretly monitored thousands of emails from its own scientists in an effort to quell threats to the agency’s reputation. The intercepted correspondence revealed an effort to report the FDA for using faulty review processes to approve dangerous health care devices. FDA officials must stop these illegal monitoring activities and restore jobs to scientists fired for protecting public safety.
While it is appropriate to observe work correspondence of employees, it is illegal to monitor private communications related to legal filings, employee grievances, and whistleblowing activities. The FDA claims to have spied in order to investigate a possible leak of confidential information. However, a review of memos from agency officials reveals that the monitoring effort sought to identify “opponents” who were spreading negative information about the FDA. The scientists’ complaints, which focused on medical imaging devices that may expose patients to dangerous levels of radiation, were found to be of valid concern for public safety by a recent government review. It is clear that the FDA wishes to protect its reputation by covering up legitimate complaints that expose the agency’s failings.
http://forcechange.com/26955/stop-the-fda-from-silencing-whistleblowers/
