The FDA was worried that proprietary information of those submitting applications for FDA approval was being released by some of the FDA scientists, specifically five scientists who had questioned the approval of medical imaging devices that the scientists believed exposed the patients to unduly high levels of radiation. So, the agency decided to monitor the e-mails of those five scientists, who used government computers both at work and at home.
This monitoring took place despite the fact that the Office of Special Counsel, which deals with the grievances of government
workers, found that the scientists’ medical claims were valid enough to
warrant a full investigation into what it termed “a substantial and
specific danger to public safety.” Furthermore, the FDA's Inspector General had ruled that “matters of public safety” can legally be released to the
news media. Finally, regulations specifically protect such information as attorney-client communications,
whistle-blower complaints to Congress and workplace grievances filed
with the government. The monitored e-mails contained just this kind of information.
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