Senate Bioterrorism Panel To Be Eliminated, Full HELP Committee To Take Over Responsibilities

Main Category: Bio-terrorism / Terrorism
Article Date: 19 Jan 2007 - 10:00 PDT

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Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chair Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) is expected to announce that the Bioterrorism and Public Health Preparedness Subcommittee will be eliminated and that the full HELP committee will assume the oversight of issues concerning pandemic and biological threats, CQ Today reports. The preparedness panel is responsible for oversight of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, which was established by law last year, and Project BioShield, a 2004 law that provides $5.6 billion over 10 years for the production of countermeasures to biological weapons and epidemics. Kennedy's plan would transfer these responsibilities to the full committee. However, "some bioterror advocates say they are concerned that the move will hamper oversight of ... HHS and the faltering efforts to stockpile vaccines and antivirals against bioterror threats," CQ Today reports. A Republican congressional aide said, "Given all the other priorities that they have, which are significant, without having a distinct focus, there is a chance (bioterror issues) can get filtered into the background." Kennedy spokesperson Laura Capps said, "We have every intention of keeping it a top priority. That's the sole intent" of moving the responsibilities to the full committee (Berger, CQ Today, 1/16).

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