[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 18]
[House]
[Page 24382]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1415
                    SUCCESSFUL AVIAN FLU PREPARATION

  (Mr. PRICE of Georgia asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, today, I had the privilege of 
joining the President for his speech at the National Institutes of 
Health where he discussed the avian flu and a potential pandemic. He 
talked about our Nation's strategy to protect outbreaks, expand 
domestic vaccine protection, stockpile treatments and prepare our 
response.
  The take-home message of all of this is preparation, not panic. It is 
important that we bring calm to the sea of sensationalism about the 
bird flu. Is this a threat? Yes, potentially. Do we need to be 
prepared? Absolutely.
  What the President outlined is a strategy for Federal, State and 
local governments and communities, neighborhoods and families. All must 
play a role. This cooperation is vital to the strategy and success.
  As a doctor, I understand and appreciate the importance of 
prevention. It is the most efficient and cost-effective way to treat 
diseases, any disease. That is the goal and the plan, to have a 
structure in place to rapidly detect outbreaks anyplace in the world, 
have the medicines and vaccines necessary to treat everyone and respond 
at every level.
  Mr. Speaker, I applaud the President for outlining a proactive, 
successful course, preventive measures to ensure the safety of all 
Americans.

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