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Mike Mitka

JAMA. 2008;299(10):1124.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

High levels of formaldehyde, which pose potential health risks, were found by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the trailers housing provided by Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for those left homeless by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. FEMA said at a joint press conference with the CDC on February 14 that it would find alternative housing for the trailer tenants.

High levels of formaldehyde, which poses a cancer risk, were found in trailers housing those left homeless by Hurricane Katrina. John Fleck/FEMA

FEMA's announcement came 2 weeks after Reps Brad Miller (D, NC) and Nick Lampson (D, Tex) accused the agency of trying to manipulate a health guidance report to downplay potential cancer risks posed by formaldehyde in the trailers.

The CDC took random air samples of 519 trailers and found average levels of formaldehyde of about 77 parts per billion (the common range . . . [Full Text of this Article]