Lumber Liquidators said it has strengthened quality assurance procedures, and in May it suspended sales of all laminate flooring sourced from China.
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Formaldehyde is a known carcinogen that causes myeloid leukemia and other cancers at high levels. The estimated risk of cancer associated with exposure to the flooring increased.
US officials released the analysis Wednesday.
The good news? Lumber Liquidators has fully cooperated with the Consumer Product Safety Commission – which has led the investigation, and worked with the CDC to conduct its study – and made numerous changes to keep this kind of thing from ever happening again.
The news is a blow to Lumber Liquidators, which had begun to recover from a deep stock slump prompted by the original reports of problems with its wood flooring.
CDC said its recommendations for dealing with the floor products are the same.
CBS’s (CBS.N) “60 Minutes” program, which broke the Lumber Liquidators story last March, highlighted the revised report on Sunday, saying it had been alerted to the possibility that the CDC scientists had made an error in the initial report. Less than three months later, the chief financial officer and chief executive officer were gone. Testing was performed at three different labs.
But this latest discovery by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is unexpected. This revises the CDC’s own findings from earlier this month.
Formaldehyde is a naturally occurring colorless, flammable chemical used to make certain building materials and household products that is toxic to animals, including humans.
The CDC/ATSDR indoor air model used an incorrect value for ceiling height. Researchers say the amount of formaldehyde given off by new products ebbs over time.
Formaldehyde levels can vary widely from home to home. There’s no timetable on when an updated report will be issued, she said.
The revised report said the “eye, nose, and throat irritation” would occur in even the best-case scenario. It also said reducing exposure should also reduce the cancer risk.
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Investors had been somewhat encouraged due to the February 10 report of the CDC that suggested the formaldehyde level in the select types of laminate flooring might cause between 2 and 9 cancer cases for every 100,000 people.
