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	U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

TESTIMONY BY:	TOMMY G. THOMPSON, SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
PLACE:	Oral Testimony Before the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, Washington, D.C
DATE:	April 18, 2002

Chairman Lieberman, Senator Thompson, and Members of the Committee, thank you for inviting me here today. You all have been staunch supporters of our efforts on the home front in this war, and we share a commitment to ensuring that Americans can live their lives in safety and security. Let me begin by thanking you so very much for your dedication and patriotism.

Building America's preparedness for a bioterrorism attack is of paramount importance to the security of our country. Should an attack occur, the President is committed to making sure we are ready to handle it quickly and successfully. Over the past six months, the President has put forth bold plans to build America's Homeland Security. We appreciate the support of Congress for the administration's supplemental request last year, and appreciate your continued support as we work on a 2003 budget.

As you know, the Department of Health and Human Services and my office have been working at break-neck speed to build our bioterrorism preparedness, particularly since the attacks of Sept. 11. This has included everything from enhancing our pharmaceutical stockpiles to building a stronger public health infrastructure to speeding up research into new medicines and diagnostic tools. We continue to get stronger every day, and I'm extremely proud of the progress we have made with your support.

Today, I'd like to update you on some of the measures that the Department of Health and Human Services has taken to bolster our overall preparedness and our ability to respond.

Let me begin with our efforts at strengthening the partnership between the federal, state and local governments. In short, we're building a more cohesive public health system and doing so faster than many people thought possible.

Within just three weeks after the President signed the supplemental appropriation on January 10, our department put together a program and structure for dispersing $1.1 billion to the states for public health system improvements. We're quite confident that no federal program of similar size has been created so quickly, or that money of this caliber was moved out of the federal coffers so quickly after legislation became law. But it's a sign of our commitment to build and build fast.

In January, we gave states 20 percent of their share of the $1.1 billion program and asked them to get to us by April 15 a plan for how they would spend the remaining 80 percent to build a stronger, more unified public health system in their respective state. The vast majority of the proposed plans from states came in this week and the CDC is beginning to review them. We have given about a dozen extensions.

The very infusion of this unprecedented level of money into states is going to force cooperation and the strengthening of our nation's health system. States, counties, communities, law enforcement, hospitals and the medical community are going to all have to come together and develop a cohesive public health system that can handle a bioterrorism event. And those efforts will be linked and coordinated with the federal government.

To further strengthen our public health system, the President's 2003 budget provides for another $518 million specifically to build up hospital preparedness. We expect this money to be used to upgrade the capacity of hospitals, outpatient facilities, emergency medical services systems, and poison control centers to care for victims of bioterrorism.

In addition, the CDC will provide support for a series of exercises to train public health and hospital workers on how to treat and control bioterrorism outbreaks together.

So as you can see, one of our highest priorities right now is building a stronger and more coordinated public health system that works closely together in a time of crisis. And again, we're moving as fast as possible and getting stronger as each day passes.

A crucial part of bioterrorism preparedness is the development of vaccines and the maintenance of the National Pharmaceutical Stockpile. We are purchasing enough antibiotics to treat up to 20 million individuals for exposure to anthrax. We are purchasing sufficient smallpox vaccines for every American. And we are proposing $650 million in the 2003 budget so the National Pharmaceutical Stockpile can effectively maintain and expand these stocks, and procure replacements when necessary.

We are also taking aggressive steps to improve laboratory security, better protect our food supply, and accelerate research.

While we are doing a great deal right now to strengthen our infrastructure, we have also made it clear that improving our bioterrorism readiness will be an ongoing endeavor. This is why the President has put forth a bioterrorism budget for HHS of $4.3 billion -- a 45 percent increase.

Mr. Chairman, this is the largest one-time investment in the American public health system ever. We are absolutely doing what it takes to make America secure, and we're working to ensure that our efforts are coordinated from the highest levels of the federal government to the most local levels of health care delivery.

Along with the new money I just mentioned for hospitals, the President's budget provides:

• $1.7 billion for the National Institutes of Health for research into new vaccines and diagnostics. It will also be able to strengthen the security of its facilities. The FDA will see an increase for its review of vaccines and diagnostics. And the CDC will see increases for the security of its facilities as well as upgrading its lab capacity.

• $940 million for state and local organizations to improve laboratory capacity, increase epidemiological expertise, provide for better electronic communication and distance learning, and support an expanded focus on cooperative training between public health agencies and local hospitals. This includes funding for the Laboratory Response Network, improving a system of over 80 public health labs specifically developed for identifying pathogens that could be used for bioterrorism. And we are working to connect every major county and metropolitan region with the Health Alert Network.

• $518 million under the Hospital Preparedness Program to support outbreak response and control. This includes funding for the training of public health and hospital staff. The increased focus on local and state preparedness serves to provide funding where it best serves the interests of the nation.

• $1.75 billion for research. The NIH is researching better anthrax, plague and hemorrhagic fever vaccines, as well as new diagnostic tools that might help detect an attack.

• $98 million to keep our food supply safe. Our budget proposal supports a substantial increase in the number of safety inspections for FDA-regulated products that are imported into the country.

• $184 million to upgrade our federal laboratory facilities and capabilities. This includes money for the completion of a second infectious disease laboratory, an environmental laboratory, an infectious disease/bioterrorism laboratory in Fort Collins, an Environmental Toxicology Lab, and a communication and training facility in Atlanta. This funding will enable the CDC to handle the most highly infectious and lethal pathogens in the world.

We hope the Senate will continue to support the administration's effort to strengthen our public health system throughout the nation.

Here at HHS, we are strengthening our coordination as well. When I first arrived a little more than a year ago, I began elevating the bioterrorism effort into my office and coordinating our activities, naming Scott Lillibridge as my special assistant on bioterrorism. This was the first time bioterrorism had been given such attention at the highest level of HHS.

Since then, we have created the Office of Public Health Preparedness, which has the task of coordinating and overseeing the bioterrorism preparedness and response activities of all the various agencies within HHS. This office coordinates our efforts and makes sure HHS is coordinated with other federal departments, state and local government and other stakeholders. It also makes sure that all HHS efforts are well-executed.

I have assembled a virtual bioterrorism defense dream team to staff this office. Dr. D.A. Henderson, an internationally acclaimed leader in public health, is the director. And working side-by-side with D.A. is Jerry Hauer, a world-renowned emergency response expert who we were fortunate to get from New York City. Also on this team are Dr. Phillip Russell, one of the nation's preeminent virologists, and Dr. Mike Asher, one of our nation's leading laboratory experts.

We also have strong relationships with our federal counterparts, most notably Homeland Security. Tom Ridge and I have a very strong working and personal relationship, going back to our days as governors. We, and our teams, have worked flawlessly together. And I am very pleased with our working relationships with Justice, the FBI and Defense. We work closely together and share information effectively.

The President is creating a strong and united team for defending our homeland and preparing our response to an emergency.

Mr. Chairman, you also requested that I mention a component of the President's management agenda that involves the consolidation efforts within this Department. In this budget, we are taking further steps to coordinate a variety of activities by consolidating our human resources offices, building and facilities management functions, as well as public affairs and legislative affairs functions. These functions are very splintered right now, even within each agency. By consolidating and coordinating these operations, we will make sure that we are managing taxpayers dollars more efficiently and speaking to Congress and the American public in a clear, accurate and efficient manner. It's a common sense effort to make sure that what we communicate makes sense to the American people and the members of the House and Senate. And in times of national emergency clarity and accuracy are absolutely essential.

In summary, our comprehensive effort shows that we are using all resources at our disposal -- from federal agencies to states and localities -- to build the strongest defense and response to bioterrorism. We doing this quickly and smartly.

Mr. Chairman, the Department of Health and Human Services is committed to working with Congress, other federal agencies, the law enforcement community, and our state and local public health partners to ensure the health and medical well-being of our fellow Americans.

We have made substantial progress to date in enhancing the nation's capability to respond to biological or chemical acts of terrorism. But there is more we can do -- and will do -- to strengthen the response.

In April 1861, as danger loomed before the Union, Abraham Lincoln issued a two-sentence directive to the then-Governor of Pennsylvania, who had asked his opinion on what to do. He said: "I think the necessity of being ready increases. Look to it." It is in that spirit of swift, effective preparation for the unknown that we pursue our efforts. We will not rest -- and we will not falter -- till America is as prepared as it possibly can be.

Thank you so very much for your time and support. I would be pleased to answer any questions you or members of the Committee may have.