​In 2014, the National Institutes of Health started the National Biosafety and Biosecurity Month to encourage institutions to reinforce their attention to biosafety and biosecurity practices, policies, and procedures. Although the lead for recognizing this month has moved to the Association for Biosafety and Biosecurity (ABSA International), the NIH continues to support and ensure we review and reinforce these principles.

Biosafety, which is defined as the prevention of harmful incidences and large-scale loss of biological integrity, focusing on environmental, animal, and human health, is critical to all institutions, especially work in our intramural laboratories at the NIH. Biosafety is fostered at NIH through the conduction of regular laboratory surveys, ongoing review of biological research, biosafety risk assessment, biosafety training, and outreach.

At NIH, the skilled and technically competent team of biosafety professionals in the Division of Occupational Health and Safety, Biorisk Management Branch are responsible for ensuring regulatory compliance as it pertains to select agents and biological research conducted at the NIH. The branch also offers expertise in the areas of infectious substance, shipping, inventory management and high containment laboratory safety. Biosafety and Biosecurity overlap many groups and teams within the DOHS, including Safety Operations Support Branch, Technical Assistance Branch, and Community Health Branch; as well as in ORS, especially those in security roles. 

Please visit The Division of Occupational Safety and Health Biorisk

Management Branch for more information and biosafety resources: https://go.nih.gov/6DJzGGR or email us at: nihbso@mail.nih.gov.

​