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STATEMENT BY SENATOR TOM HARKIN AT THE LABOR-HHS APPROPRIATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE HEARING ON AVIAN FLU PREPAREDNESS
11/17/2005
“Mr. Chairman, thank you for calling this hearing this morning. I am
concerned that the United States is unprepared for an outbreak – and a
subsequent pandemic – of avian flu. We’ve had two major disasters in
the last four years – 9/11 and Katrina – and the federal government was
totally unprepared for both despite warnings. Similarly, we have been
warned in no uncertain terms about avian flu. This time, however, we
must be prepared.
“As you know, avian flu — or H5N1 — has only passed from bird species
to humans. But experts tell us it is only a matter of time before the
virus mutates and human-to-human transmission becomes widespread. An
outbreak in China, Vietnam or Cambodia could trigger – within a couple
weeks’ time — a world-wide outbreak facilitated by air travel and the
mass movement of people across borders. Indeed, many experts say that
it is not a matter of if – but when.
“Senator Specter and I worked together late last year to make sure that
Congress provided funds to address a possible pandemic flu epidemic. We
included almost $8 billion in the FY 2006 LHHS bill to address this
possible pandemic. Those funds were intended to be used to upgrade
state and local capacity, stockpile vaccines and antivirals, increase
global surveillance activities, and to expand the domestic production
of flu vaccine. Unfortunately, in the end, Congress only provided a
little less than $4 billion for pandemic flu preparedness – less than
half of what was included in the Senate LHHS bill and more than $3
billon less than requested by the President. One of our witnesses today
has said in his written testimony that ‘this shortfall did not send a
positive message to manufacturers about the the certainty and stability
of the governments efforts to fully address a public health threat of
this magnitude.’
“I was also very disappointed that, while the final bill included
immunity protections for vaccine manufacturers, it included no funds to
protect those who receive the vaccine and now have no recourse against
the manufacturer. Let me say that I favor limited liability protections
for manufacturers of vaccines and other countermeasures related to
avian flu, as long as compensation is also available to any individuals
who suffer as result of their use. What is most disturbing is that this
provision was added in the middle of the night after the conference
report was signed. The Republican leadership abused their power and
added a never-before-seen immunity protection provision more than six
hours after the conference was closed.
“On a more positive note, we were able to designate $350 million of the
funds appropriated to address pandemic flu for upgrading state and
local response capacity to a pandemic. The President had only requested
$100 million. State and local public health agencies will be on the
front lines of both surveillance and disease prevention should an
outbreak occur. Mr. Chairman, I am glad to see that you have asked a
number of state and local public health
directors to today’s hearings. In particular, I am pleased to see that
Dr. Mary Hansen, Director of the Iowa Department of Public Health will
be testifying before the Subcommittee this morning. In fact, I will be
joining Dr. Hansen and Secretary Leavitt at the flu summit in Des
Moines this Friday.
“I am also pleased to see Dr. Julie Gerberding this morning. The
Centers for Disease Control is doing a fine job working in cooperation
with the World Health Organization and governments in affected regions
to detect the disease and help to stop its spread. Surveillance can
alert us to an outbreak, and governments can then take measures to
isolate the disease so that widespread infection does not occur.
“So, again, thank you, Mr. Chairman, for calling this hearing and I look forward to hearing the testimony.”
