Early detection key to safeguarding America

A hearing on “One year later: Implementing the bio-surveillance requirements of the 9/11 act” before the Emerging Threats, Cybersecurity, and Science and Technology Subcommittee. Chairman James R. Langevin (D-R.I.) said that the threat of biological attack is real and wanted to address one of the ‘most glaring vulnerabilities’ facing America.

According to Langevin, the 9/11 act authorizes the National Biosurveillance Integration Center (NBIC) and requires the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to submit a report to Congress describing federal, state and local biosurveillance efforts. He noted that the keys to stopping an attack from turning into a catastrophe were early detection, identification, tracking and response.

Robert Hooks, deputy assistant for weapons of mass destruction and biodefense from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and Eric Myers, director of NBIC from DHS, issued a joint statement and said that America’s first indication of a bioterrorist attack would be through early detection and warning systems such as BioWatch and the NBIC. Hooks and Myers noted that a ‘comprehensive biosurveillance capability’ could minimize the impact and the duration of an attack.

William Jenkins, Jr., director of homeland security and justice issues from the GAO, said that the DHS had made efforts to make NBIC completely operational by September 30 but it remains unclear what operations the center will be capable of at that point in time. In addition, Jenkins emphasized the importance of improving the technology used by the BioWatch program.