Three years after the FDA linked the Heparin scandal to contaminated supplies from China, a Congressional committee has lashed out at the agency for failing to find the culprits behind the episode and has now written FDA commish Margaret Hamburg to release all documents related to the agency investigation.

You may recall that contaminated heparin made in China was linked to 81 deaths in 2007 and 2008 (back story), and the episode sparked a firestorm of criticism at the FDA for its failure to monitor medicines made there (background).

“There is reason to believe all or some of the individuals responsible for the adulteration are still actively engaged in the Chinese pharmaceutical supply chain and pose a continuing threat to pharmaceutical products imported to the (United States),” Fred Upton, a Michigan Republican who chairs the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and two colleagues wrote in their letter. “We believe there is substantial public interest in solving this case.”

They noted that about 80 percent of the US heparin supply comes from China, and about 16 percent of all pharmaceutical ingredients are also imported from China. An FDA task force had identified the substance that contaminated the heparin, which made the treatment more valuable, and that the move was economically motivated. But the FDA has not disclosed any additional info.

Last summer, the FDA was chastised by Republicans on the same committee, where they were a minority at the time, for not moving faster to complete its probe (look here). In their defense, FDA officials told Congress they repeatedly asked the Chinese government for help in pursuing an investigation, but were “severely hampered” by a lack of cooperation.