Sen. Kit Bond Tours Bioterrorism Center


		Contact: Clayton Berry Phone: 314.977.7117 berrycl@slu.edu March 26, 2002 Sen. Kit Bond Tours Bioterrorism Center ST. LOUIS - Missouri Sen. Kit Bond visited Saint Louis University's bioterrorism center Tuesday, March 26, on the first stop of a two-week tour of Missouri's fire departments and other first-responder agencies. Bond discussed the details of his new $100 million bill to strengthen the nation's defense against possible terrorist attack. University President Lawrence Biondi, S.J., welcomed Bond to the SLU Center for Bioterrorism and Emerging Infections, which has been instrumental in educating front line emergency workers about biological warfare agents and how to best protect American citizens from the horrors of bioterrorism. "Well before Sept. 11, Sen. Bond was instrumental in making possible the SLU Center for the Study of Bioterrorism and Emerging Infections," Biondi said. In the last two years, Bond has secured more than $1 million for the center, which has developed a curriculum that is being used nationwide to train health care providers and public health departments. In fact, the center's training materials were used by the CDC to instruct emergency health personnel, health care providers and other public health workers in New York how to respond to the Sept. 11 attacks. In light of the Sept. 11 attacks, "the work of this center is far more important," Bond said. Bond's proposal, the "National Response to Terrorism and Consequence Management Act of 2002," would give the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency the authority to spend immediately $100 million in already approved funds to boost firefighter and other emergency response training programs across the nation. Funds from the bill also would be used to enhance the bioterrorism center's curriculum development and health care workforce training. Missouri Task Force One, the state's Urban Search and Recovery team that provided assistance at the World Trade Center site and local firefighters joined Bond at SLU to hear details of his new legislation. The Center for the Study of Bioterrorism and Emerging Infections at Saint Louis University School of Public Health provides a comprehensive and coordinated training and preparedness program across the full continuum of public health activities in the United States to protect Americans from both emerging infections and the intentional use of biological agents. The center's main task is to prepare emergency response teams, physicians, nurses, health administrators, and public health and community officials to respond effectively to emerging health threats. In the fall of 2000, Saint Louis University School of Public Health was designated as one of 10 Centers for Public Health Preparedness, a new national network formed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Of the 10 centers, Saint Louis University is the only center of the 10 to focus solely on the study of bioterrorism and emerging infections. Saint Louis University is a leading Catholic, Jesuit research institution ranked among the top fifty national, doctoral universities as a best value by U.S. News & World Report. Founded in 1818, the University strives to foster the intellectual and spiritual growth of its 11,000 students through a broad array of undergraduate, graduate and professional degree programs on campuses in St. Louis and Madrid, Spain. ###