Press Release

States receive $40 million for stronger public health preparedness for bioterrorism

HHS' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention awarded $40 million today to states and major cities to expand and upgrade their ability to detect and respond to biological and chemical agents, and provide a public health response to terrorist acts in the United States. These funds allow communities to develop or enhance public health capacities at the local and state level. Specifically, CDC funded 127 project activities in the following five categories:

• $1.3 million for readiness planning assessment among local and state health departments;
• $7.8 million to build capacity to detect outbreaks of illness that might have been caused by terrorists;
• $8.8 million to expand state and local biological laboratory capacity;
• $4 million for laboratory expertise to identify the biological or chemical agents involved;
• $19 million for an improved electronic communications network, which will include Internet access for local health departments to share information among public health officials regarding unusual disease outbreaks.

The grants announced today are part of a total of $173 million in FY 1999 funding to prepare against bioterrorism. This HHS funding will be used to improve the nation's public health infrastructure to quickly detect disease symptoms from unknown agents and protect against the consequences of these biological or chemical attacks.

In addition to the leadership, guidance, and resources that CDC is providing to States and local communities, the agency is also enhancing laboratory services at CDC. These enhancements will help public health laboratories to readily identify agents suspected in bioterrorism events. Further, CDC has received $52 million to begin the establishment of a national pharmaceutical stockpile, which will ensure the availability of drugs, vaccines, prophylactic medicines, chemical antidotes, medical supplies, and equipment that will be needed to support a medical response to a biological or chemical terrorist incident.

"Every dollar we spend on preparing public health locally for even the possibility of a biological or chemical release among their civilian population is also a dollar that helps reinvigorate our public health infrastructure," said CDC Director Jeffrey P. Koplan, M.D., M.P.H. "The medical expertise, laboratories, and communication network needed to counter bioterrorism are the same resources that are needed to detect diseases in the community from any source, whether natural or deliberate."

A public health responsibility in the overall federal bioterrorism response is to improve the public health community's ability to detect illnesses and determine quickly where it may be related to a bioterrorism act.

"Terrorists can strike fast and disappear, leaving victims, unknowingly, to fall ill days or weeks after the attack," said Scott Lillibridge, M.D., chief, CDC/Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Program. "A strong public health network across the nation is needed to piece together early reports of illness and determine quickly what has happened. We're encouraged by the focus local and state health departments have put on this need. "

Public Health Preparedness and Response for Bioterrorism
Grantees by Focus Area

A: $1.3M	B1: $6.8M	B2: $1.0M	C:$7.8M	D: $4.0M	E: $19.0M
Alabama	Alabama	Florida	Alabama	California	Alabama
California	Alaska	Hawaii	Alaska	Michigan	Alaska
Colorado	Arizona	Massachusetts	Arizona	New York	Arizona
Hawaii	California	Minnesota	Arkansas	Virginia	Arkansas
Illinois	Chicago	New Mexico	California		California
Michigan	Colorado	New York	Colorado		Chicago
New York City	Florida	Washington	Connecticut		Colorado
North Carolina	Georgia		Florida		Connecticut
Ohio	Hawaii		Illinois		Delaware
	Illinois		Iowa		Florida
	Kansas		Kansas		Georgia
	Kentucky		Los Angeles		Illinois
	Los Angeles		Louisiana		Kansas
	Maryland		Maryland		Los Angeles
	Massachusetts		Massachusetts		Louisiana
	Michigan		Michigan		Massachusetts
	Minnesota		Minnesota		Minnesota
	Mississippi		Mississippi		Missouri
	Montana		Nebraska		Montana
	Nebraska		New Hampshire		Nevada
	New Jersey		New Mexico		New Hampshire
	New Mexico		New York		New Jersey
	New York		New York City		New Mexico
	New York City		North Dakota		New York
	Ohio		Ohio		New York City
	Oregon		Oklahoma		North Dakota
	Rhode Island		Oregon		Ohio
	South Carolina		Pennsylvania		Oregon
	Texas		Rhode Island		Rhode Island
	Utah		South Carolina		Texas
	Virginia		South Dakota		Utah
	Washington		Tennessee		Vermont
	Wisconsin		Texas		Virginia
	Wyoming		Utah		Washington
			Virginia		West Virginia
			Wisconsin		Wisconsin
			Wyoming
A: Preparedness Planning and Readiness Assessment B: Epidemiology and Surveillance Capacity     B1: Core Capacity     B2: Special Projects C: Laboratory Capacity for Biologic Agents D: Laboratory Capacity for Chemical Agents E: Health Alert Network/Training

###
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES