Biotechnology: Debugging Bug Rules

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Biotechnology is an exciting new frontier, but it has developed without clear rules on how to regulate activity that tinkers with the basics of organic life. Last week President Reagan changed that. He signed a 475-page set of guidelines laying out national policy in the biotech field that says, in essence, no new regulations are required to deal with the biotechnology explosion. Instead, the main thrust of the Administration's effort will be to cut down on costly problems of overlapping federal jurisdiction. One reform: new biotech products may now pass for inspection through two federal agencies simultaneously rather than one at a time.

Criticism came quickly. Jeremy Rifkin, a well-known foe of the biotech industry, declared that his Foundation on Economic Trends will file suit against the White House this week over the new rules.