Report finds U.S. unprepared for biological attack

The Bipartisan WMD Terrorism Research Center released the Bio-Response Report Card Wednesday that finds the U.S. unprepared to respond to a large-scale biological attack. The report recommends increasing federal funding for three R&D areas: medical countermeasures and accompanying regulatory science; environmental remediation; and bioforensics.

The report also calls for the creation of mechanisms to ensure long-term funding of FDA biodefense research that are similar to the mechanisms used by the Department of Defense for weapons development. The report also said the Obama administration should provide Congress an integrated and prioritized budget for the entire medical countermeasure enterprise. To purchase medical countermeasures, the report said Congress should provide additional funding for the BioShield Strategic Reserve Fund and ensure that the funds are only used as intended. ...