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By Category: Public Health

Government Studies Inconclusive on Health Impact of Chemical Contaminants at Fort Detrick, Md.

(The National Academies) Two government-issued studies are unable to demonstrate whether people were harmed by groundwater contaminated with toxic pollutants from Area B of Fort Detrick, Md., says a new report by the National Research Council. Furthermore, it is unlikely that additional studies could establish a link, because data on early exposures were not collected  Read More »

Amateurs Are New Fear in Creating Mutant Virus

(New York Times) On the question of who, while terrorists and cults have long been a concern in biosecurity circles, some scientists also fear that publication may allow curious amateurs to recreate the mutated virus — raising the risk of an accidental release.

Panics and Pandemics

(New Yorker) This week, Michael Specter writes about the controversy that followed the creation of a highly contagious form of H5N1, or bird flu, by scientists at the Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam. Researchers had made avian influenza contagious by …

Lab-engineered bird flu virus may be less deadly than thought — or not

(Washington Post) Osterholm and Relman are on the National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity, a 23-member committee that advises the federal government on issues involving biological research that can be used for nefarious purposes. In December, the panel asked the …

Planned CDC Funding Cut Seen Endangering Key Biodefense Efforts

(Global Security Newswire) Congressional appropriations for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention might fall by $664 million under the Obama administration’s fiscal 2013 budget request, a reduction that could significantly undermine U.S. medical preparedness and countermeasure programs if backup funding sources fall through, the journal Nature reported on Tuesday. The proposed reduction would  Read More »

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