Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Project Bioshield Act of 2004.  Bioterrorism is a major threat to our national security, and I believe it is our job as members of Congress to instill confidence in the American people that a coordinated, concerted effort is being made to combat this threat.  While Project Bioshield is not the only answer, it is certainly an important step towards that goal, and I hope Congress will continue to provide the funding and oversight the project needs to be effective.

This bill, much like H.R. 2212 passed by the House a year ago, authorizes the Project Bioshield initiative and will set in motion crucial efforts to develop new countermeasures to treat diseases and conditions caused by bioterror attacks and chemical, radiological and nuclear agents.  Under this program, the federal government will be able to enhance the Strategic National Stockpile, promote research and development of countermeasures, and, in an emergency, move forward with public distribution of certain drugs and treatments that may not yet have FDA approval.  It is never pleasant to imagine a scenario where this kind of preparation and flexibility will be necessary, but the threat is indeed there.  Project Bioshield will help lay the groundwork to respond to that threat quickly and effectively.

However, I must also mention my ongoing concern that until the Department of Homeland Security’s Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection Directorate is fully staffed and  meeting expectations, the rest of DHS is at a tremendous disadvantage in determining how to allocate resources and focus energies.  The proper implementation of Project Bioshield requires a reliable and comprehensive threat assessment from the Information Analysis team, a team that should include bioterror experts working closely with their peers at agencies like CDC and NIH to identify the most pressing dangers and develop a plan to combat them.

So, Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation and hope that DHS will do its part to make Project Bioshield as effective as possible.