NEIDL Takes Two Steps Toward Full Operation; Boston City Council, Superior Court Both Decide in Favor of Research
Original article from: BU Today, posted on May 15, 2014. By Art Jahnke
Both the Boston City Council and the Massachusetts Superior Court yesterday took actions that move Boston University’s National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories (NEIDL) closer to full operation. The City Council voted down a proposed ordinance that would have banned research at Biosafety Level 4 (BSL-4) in Boston, and the Superior Court rejected a challenge to a risk assessment by theNational Institutes of Health that had found that NEIDL poses minimal risk to the community.
The City Council voted eight to five against a proposal to ban BSL-4 research, which four weeks ago was the subject of a marathon standing-room-only debate that pitted Councilman Charles Yancey, the ordinance sponsor, and other opponents of BSL-4 research against representatives of the biotech industry and Boston University.