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Ministers rule out mass
vaccination for smallpox
By David Millward
(Filed: 15/04/2002)
DETAILED plans to counter the use of smallpox in a
biological attack by terrorists have been drawn up in Whitehall, but
ministers have ruled out the re-introduction of mass vaccination.
Instead, the Government would create a series of
"firewalls", treating those with the disease and inoculating people in
direct or indirect contact with them to prevent smallpox spreading.
At the same time there is to be an international
exercise next month to co-ordinate cross-border co-operation among
members of the G7 group of industrial nations.
But the decision to buy 16 million doses of the vaccine
was overshadowed by the controversy over
the award of the £32 million contract to PowderJect after it emerged
that Dr Paul Drayson, its chief executive,
donated £50,000 to Labour nine months ago.
It left the Government embroiled in yet more
damaging "cash for contracts" allegations. But it is understood that
ministers chose PowderJect on military and security advice.
PowderJect is ready to make available the Lister strain
of the vaccine, the same as that being developed for military use at the
Ministry of Defence laboratory in Porton Down, Wilts.
Ministers were told that it would be advisable to
ensure that the same strains were being used for military and civilian
purposes.
But PowderJect's main rival, Acambis, which has won the
contract to provide 92 million doses of the New York City strain of the
vaccine, said it could have met British demand if the Government had not
insisted on the Lister strain.
A spokesman for the Cambridge-based company said its
version had been tested, but admitted that it would have taken Acambis
two years to test and produce the doses of Lister vaccine.
The Government's decision to press ahead with buying
doses of the Lister strain was endorsed by Colin Kaplan, Emeritus
Professor of Microbiology at Reading University.
Prof Kaplan said that although there was little to
choose between the Lister and New York strains, harmonising military and
civilian policy was sensible.
He said he believed that the greatest threat was from
bio-terrorism.
"If you believe that some form of biological warfare is
in prospect, then having vaccine stocks is a sensible thing to do.
Smallpox is destructive and easier to spread around than anthrax.
"All you have to do is smuggle someone on to the Tube
with the virus. He then shakes a handkerchief."
Those nearby would feel ill after about 10 days and
also start infecting others. But it would take around 14 days for
smallpox to be diagnosed.
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