News & Perspective

(CIDRAP News) – In view of the specter of bioterrorism, it's time to overhaul the hodgepodge of outdated, little-known, inconsistent state laws dealing with public health emergencies in the United States, an expert on the subject told a conference audience in Minneapolis yesterday.

(CIDRAP News) – The proposed 2003 budget for the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) features a 45% increase in spending for bioterrorism preparedness, with research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) accounting for much of the increase.

Editor's note: This story was updated Jan 30, 2003, with additional information from the Department of Health and Human Services.

(CIDRAP News) – President Bush yesterday proposed an initiative, called Project Bioshield, to speed the development and production of vaccines and treatments for smallpox, anthrax, botulism, and other diseases that could be spread by terrorists.

(CIDRAP News) – Six months after President Bush proposed the idea, the US House this week overwhelmingly passed "Project Bioshield," a plan to promote the development of drugs and vaccines needed to defend the nation against attacks with biological and other unconventional weapons.

(CIDRAP News) – The Bush administration today released a long catalog of what it considers the nation's biodefense and public health preparedness gains over the last 3 years and promised more improvements to come.

(CIDRAP News) – The US Senate yesterday overwhelmingly passed "Project BioShield," a 10-year, $5.6 billion program to promote rapid development and use of drugs and vaccines to counter biological and chemical weapons.

(CIDRAP News) – President Bush today signed the bill establishing Project BioShield, a $5.6 billion program to speed the development of drugs and vaccines to combat the effects of biological, chemical, nuclear, and radiological agents.

(CIDRAP News) – The US government needs much closer collaboration with private industry—like the arrangements used in building aircraft carriers and putting men on the moon—in order to improve the nation's medical defenses against biological, chemical, radiological, and nuclear threats, says a report from a federal advisory panel.

(CIDRAP News) – A 5-year strategic plan released yesterday by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) promises new approaches to food safety in line with new legislation and increased efforts to smooth the regulatory pathway for medical defenses against biological and other unconventional attacks.

(CIDRAP News) – A report from the National Research Council (NRC) calls for some changes in a US Army immunization program for lab researchers who work with dangerous pathogens, saying the vaccines need to be made more accessible to civilian scientists.