[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 42 (Tuesday, April 16, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Page S2719]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


      STRENGTHENING THE PUBLIC'S HEALTH AND FIGHTING BIOTERRORISM

 Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I rise today to talk about 
strengthening our medical care community against the threat of 
bioterrorism. As chairman of the Subcommittee on International 
Security, Proliferation, and Federal Services, I held a hearing in July 
2001 where representatives from the Federal Emergency Management Agency 
and the Department of Health and Human Services discussed the 
activities underway by dedicated Federal employees across the 
Government to prepare our communities for a biological crisis. On 
October 17, 2001, I co-chaired a joint Subcommittee/Governmental 
Affairs Committee hearing to discuss further the public health 
implications of bioterrorism. Coincidentally the hearing was held on 
the same day the Hart Senate Office Building was shut down because of 
the anthrax attack.
  Through these hearings, and several others held in both the House and 
Senate, we have learned that the Federal Government is not unprepared 
to deal with bioterrorism. However, preparedness levels are not uniform 
or consistent across the United States, and there are considerable and 
serious problems. As I said during our hearing in October, while not 
unprepared, America is clearly under prepared.
  Now, almost 6 months to the day after the first anthrax letter 
arrived in Hart, I urge my colleagues to join me in sponsoring two 
initiatives that are modest in nature but which have profound impact on 
our fight against bioterrorism.
  The first initiative, S. 1560 the Biological Agent-Environmental 
Detection Act, will increase our efforts to develop the necessary tools 
to minimize the impact of bioterrorism by reducing the number of people 
exposed and alerting authorities and medical personnel to a threat 
before symptoms occur. Current methods are not adequate to monitor the 
air, water, and food supply continuously in order to detect rapidly the 
presence of biological agents.
  The Biological Agent-Environmental Detection Act establishes an 
interagency task force to coordinate public-private research in 
environmental monitoring and detection tools of bioterrorist agents. 
The act authorized appropriations totaling $40 million to the 
Department of Health and Human Services to encourage cooperative 
agreements between Federal Government and industry or academic 
laboratory centers, and pursue new technologies, approaches and 
programs to identify clandestine laboratory locations. The act also 
establishes a means of testing, verifying and calibrating new detection 
and surveillance tools and techniques developed by the private sector. 
Secretary of Health and Human Services Thompson supported this 
legislation and the authorization amount during the Subcommittee/
Governmental Affairs Committee Hearing in October.
  Senator Rockefeller and I introduced S. 1561 Strengthening 
bioterrorism preparedness through expanded National Disaster Medical 
System training programs. This measure provides training for health 
care workers for bioterrorism or any biological crisis. Strengthening 
the public health system is very important and is being addressed by 
several congressional and administrative initiatives. But public health 
does not translate necessarily to the medical community. Creating a 
critical line of defense against bioterrorism must involve health care 
professionals. Training of emergency medical technicians, physicians, 
and nurses has been hindered by a lack of economic incentives for 
hospitals and clinics to make available formal training opportunities.
  In fiscal year 2001, the Department of Veterans Affairs, VA, was 
appropriated $800,000 to establish a training program for VA staff for 
the National Disaster Medical System, which is made up of VA and the 
Departments of Defense and Health and Human Services, and the Federal 
Emergency Management Agency.
  One such training program, open to VA and Department of Defense staff 
as well as their community counterparts, took place earlier this year. 
The Akaka-Rockefeller bill expands this program by drawing on 
established partnerships between the 173 VA hospitals and community 
hospitals and using existing VA resources to implement a telemedicine 
and training program for local health care providers in bioterrorism 
preparedness and response.
  In formulating a congressional response to bioterrorism, we must not 
forget the role our local and community hospitals would play in such a 
crisis. We must provide our professionals, public health officials, and 
emergency managers the earliest possible warning of pending outbreaks. 
I know our scientists and engineers can develop robust, effective, and 
accurate detection methods. Likewise, I believe we have the best and 
most dedicated health care staff in the world. They deserve to have the 
training and information needed to protect and treat Americans in 
instances of biological terrorism.

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