Daniel Akaka: “I rise today to give strong support to H.R. 3448, the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response…”

“I rise today to give strong support to H.R. 3448, the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act. The Nation is looking to Congress to provide the building blocks to prepare for and respond to bioterrorism. H.R. 3448 takes several good steps to coordinate and strengthen Federal programs and help states and communities prepare for bioterrorism and other public health crises. As an original cosponsor of the Senate companion bill, I am proud to support the final product. The work that the bill managers and their staff have done in preparing this important legislation is to be commended. H.R. 3448 provides $1.1 billion in funding for grants to state and local governments to prepare response plans, buy equipment, and train health care workers for bioterrorism and other public health emergencies, and an additional $520 million for community hospitals. The Act authorizes funding and establishes safety procedures for scientists to use pathogens for vaccine and disease research. H.R. 3448 builds up many of the Nation's resources that have been weakened from years of neglect and also addresses several new concerns. Early detection of a biological threat is critical in minimizing the number of people exposed to an agent and the extent that the agent or disease will spread. New tools capable of detecting small quantities of infectious agents in food, water, air and other vectors are needed.”