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Massachusetts not ready for bioterror attack
State auditor criticizes state’s preparedness for a bioterror attack; the state acquired ten medical trailers to treat victims, but one of them is missing
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Long Island restaurant employee discovered with typhoid fever
A Long Island pizzeria employee worked for three days while infected before symptoms showed; health authorities say about 100 may be at “low risk” of infection
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U.S. food inspection system one step away from breaking point
High FDA official says U.S. food inspection system is not broken yet, but that a few food-borne outbreaks at the same time would push it toward the “breaking point”; official says FDA is “lacking the work force” to be able to respond to more than one major food borne outbreak at a time
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Western companies eyeing India's $90 billion processed food market
The globalization of food supply is a two-way street: More and more Western food companies sell their products in the growing Indian market; rising standard of living and working mothers drive the demand for pre-packaged and pre-prepared food, but local culinary preferences, and government bureaucratic practices, die hard
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CSC in $16 million contract to continue development of NEDSS
The National Electronic Disease Surveillance System Base System (NEDSS) electronically links surveillance activities to improve the ability to track and identify emerging infectious diseases and potential bioterrorism attacks
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Debating NAIS
Is the USDA’s Nationwide Automatic Identification System (NAIS) an essential tool for fighting animal disease and agroterrorism — or is it a threat to civil liberties and a heavy, unnecessary burden on small farmers and pet owners? The debate continues
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CDC enlists U Indiana in epidemic information sharing, bioterror response
Indiana University awarded $2.6 million to bolster the ability of local, state, and federal agencies ability to share data and information on the outbreak of epidemics
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Worries about drugs in the U.S. water supply increase
The annual meeting of the Society of Toxicology is being held in Seattle this week; among the major topics: Pharmaceuticals contaminating the U.S. water supply; 7,000 scientists and regulators from 45 countries attend
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FDA criticized for ignoring health problems in spinach packing
You may want to think twice before ordering spinach next time: Inspections of sixty-seven facilities found inadequate restroom sanitation, litter piles, and indoor condensation posing a risk of food contamination by microorganisms; the bad thing is that the FDA has taken no action to correct these breaches
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U.K., U.S. work together toward shared goals // Sir Alan Collins
The shared goal of both the United States and the United Kingdom is safeguarding our citizens and the security of key national assets. Our governments are working collaboratively and have long recognized the need to work closely on science and technologies for security
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With biological warfare, real-time detection is key
The largest improvements in any biowarfare identification system’s performance will come in the form of smaller packages, more automated measurement, and faster measurement
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Company involved in largest U.S. meat recall admits it was at fault
In February Hallmark/Westland Meat was forced to recall 143 million pounds of meat — the largest recall in U.S. history — after it was revealed that the company processed cows which were potentially sick; a week after the recall, the company went out of business; company’s president admits company was at fault
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U.S. to lose a generation of young medical, biology researchers
Five consecutive years of flat funding the budget of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is deterring promising young researchers and threatening the future of U.S. health, a group of seven preeminent academic research institutions warn
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Pandemic flu may be well mitigated until vaccine is available
New study shows that high levels of compliance, ascertainment, and social distancing would make it possible to mitigate a flu pandemic until a vaccine is available
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Toxic newts lose war against immune-enhanced garter snakes
A newt is armed with a poison so deadly that a single animal can kill a dozen people; garter snakes, the newt’s main predator, have developed resistance to the poison; researchers say this does not bode well for humans: Our bodies may develop resistance which would make medications ineffective
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The long view
Huge Areas May Face Possibly Fatal Heat Waves if Warming Continues
A new assessment warns that if Earth’s average temperature reaches 2 degrees C over the preindustrial average, widespread areas may become too hot during extreme heat events for many people to survive without artificial cooling.