The state and territorial public health laboratory: program activities, organization and prospects for the future.

During the past two years we have studied the characteristics of state and territorial public health laboratories in an attempt to develop guidelines for considering reorganization of laboratory services in Massachusetts. Only a few recent monographs have dealt with this topic and, to our knowledge, the functional and organizational characteristics of these laboratories have not been reviewed. The state public health laboratory system affords an excellent example of applied laboratory science or technology organized to provide basic public health services. In this paper the programs and organization of the state public health laboratory are reviewed, and a functional basis more responsive to society's current needs is suggested.