Richard Burr: “this legislation, ``The Smallpox Emergency Personnel Protection Act,'' is another positive step towards preparing our…”

“this legislation, ``The Smallpox Emergency Personnel Protection Act,'' is another positive step towards preparing our citizens for a bioterrorist attack. For more than 2 years, I have been working on legislation to strengthen and build our nation's public health system. The first bill was signed into law in 2000 and established grant programs to address core public health capacity needs. The second bill was last year's bioterrorism legislation. In part, that legislation built on the grant structure created in 2000 and sent a significant amount of money to our public health infrastructure. That money is currently funding basic needs such as computers and Internet access for public health departments and more specific needs such as decontamination chambers. Needs that are essential for providing public health care services and critical for bioterrorism preparedness. On January 24 of this year, Secretary Tommy Thompson asked hospital workers, police officers, firefighters, and other public officials, to volunteer to receive the smallpox vaccination. Understandably, the reception was lukewarm. Nurses and physicians were concerned about the side effects of the vaccine and wanted to be compensated for any medical care or lost employment they incurred as a result of their vaccination. Hospitals were worried about liability. And public health departments were worried about the cost. In response, we have H.R. 1413.…”