Doctors Blast Feds' Smallpox Plan

NewsMax ^ | 9/26/02 | Limbacher

[Tumbleweed_Connection]

The federal government's plan to withhold the smallpox vaccine until after an outbreak is woefully inadequate and would most likely lead to chaos and thousands of preventable deaths, according to a prominent organization of physicians.

The Association of American Physicians and Surgeons has released a five-prong defense plan calling for voluntary advance immunizations. The organization urges local officials to develop an aggressive strategy to stockpile medical supplies, monitor public places and refine reporting and deployment systems.

"The CDC must be in deep denial,” said Jane M. Orient, M.D., executive director of AAPS as well as Doctors for Disaster Preparedness.

"They may have elaborate paper plans to provide for parking and bathroom facilities at mass immunization sites. But these plans will be too little, too late, even if they don’t collapse completely in a crisis. Thousands will die.”

The organization advises five immediate steps:

Make immunizations available, with full disclosure and informed consent, to those who want them. Medical workers, frequent travelers, or people who work in crowded areas or high-rise buildings are among those at risk of early exposure.

Install high-tech devices, such as electronic noses, in public places such as airports and subways to detect signs of immune system activation in people who are exposed but not yet sick. Allocate $20 million for development and clinical trials of promising anti-viral agents.

Stockpile anti-virals now being used to treat AIDS complications and approve emergency off-label use in the event of a smallpox outbreak.

Disperse vaccines, drugs, supplies and laboratory equipment to local authorities. Total reliance on a centralized system could be disastrous. The CDC says the vaccine is too dangerous for the general public. "This is a red herring. Children are routinely required to take vaccines against diseases much less serious than smallpox despite comparable side effects,” said Dr. Orient.

She calls the government "two-faced” about vaccine reactions. With voluntary vaccines before a crisis, it is much easier to screen out those who are at high risk of complications and get them to people who are more likely to be exposed, she says.

Also, people who have been inoculated should have as little contact as possible with those especially vulnerable to infection, she says. That would be impossible during a crisis.

"The CDC plan is overly optimistic. Their ‘ring immunization’ plan is outdated in an age of bioterrorism,” said Dr. Orient.

In the days when "ring immunization” was effectively used, an outbreak consisted of a few cases in a population that already had a high degree of immunity. Now every American is susceptible.

AAPS has been outspoken in opposing mandatory vaccines. "We don’t make these recommendations lightly,” Dr. Orient said. "Voluntarily screen and vaccinate now, or answer for countless preventable deaths later.”

[AzJP]

Dr. Jane Orient was one of, if not the, first doctor to read, analyze, critique, and friggin' blast at Hillary's so-called health-care scheme. She did that very well.

kj

[Virginia-American]

I prefer voluntary too. But when I was a kid (in the '50s) it was simply taken for granted that one had, by law, to have one's shots, including the biggie, smallpox.

I'm a fairly hard-core libertarian, but I do think public health (in the traditional sense, not CDC bullets=viruses or DEA "heroin epidemic" crap, but real communicable disease control) is a legit function of the Fed, as well as the state, gov't.

My real gripe is the gov't preventing people from getting vaccinated. That is risking the deaths of millions for absolutely no gain. Mandatory vaccinations would cause, maybe, a few hundred or a thousand deaths. IMO, if vaccine were legally available, enough people would get vaccinated that the whole question of mandated vaccination would become moot. I know I surely will get it when it's available!

[BulletBrasDotNet]

I had a smallpox vaccine when I was a little kid back in the 1950s. What's the problem here? Seems there are a lot of nervous-nellies running around complaining the "sky is falling" like Chicken Little. sheesh.

[bonesmccoy]

The federal government permitted monopolization of vaccine supply during Clinton-Gore. Only White House intervention can overturn the current patent and pidgeon-hole strategy of the vaccine companies (especially Wyeth Pharmaceuticals). Wyeth not only has Small Pox vaccine monopolized, but they have other vaccine monopolies also.

The CDC, FDA, and Dept. of Commerce-Patent & Trademark Offices need to collaborate to review all patent rights related to vaccines.

[Dark Wing]

ping

[vannrox]

ABSOLUTELY

IF a Bio-Attack will occur, you can be assured that the points of attack will be multiple (thus forcing a number of "islolation and containment" rings.

Further that the attacks will be staged. Meaning that the "natural" waves of attack will be confused. As different points of insertion at different times make idolation rings ineffective.

Also this is against a no longer immune citizenary. In the past, the attacks would only have a 30% effective rate of fatality, primarily because the grade of Smallpox is "natural" AND that the population has been exposed to less-than-lethal variations in the past. This is no longer true.

The grades of Military smallpox are designed in two very awlful ways. The first is that they are now extremely fatal. Death rates exceeding 95% can be expected. Further, once the individaul contacts the germ, that is it. They are doomed. But most frightening is the horrible fact that the military grade has been developed to create a slow and painful and agonizing death that would linger over time. Three weeks of painful blisterings that are immune to pain relieving drugs. Expect it.

[Dark Wing]

You beat me to pinging this!

[bonesmccoy]

One ping please. One ping...

[texasbluebell]

The grades of Military smallpox are designed in two very awlful ways. The first is that they are now extremely fatal. Death rates exceeding 95% can be expected. Further, once the individaul contacts the germ, that is it. They are doomed. But most frightening is the horrible fact that the military grade has been developed to create a slow and painful and agonizing death that would linger over time.

Maybe someone knows the answer to this:

Is the smallpox that Saddam would release weaponized or military grade (and does that mean those are the same thing?) and if so, then is the vaccine we would be given going to protect us from that?

Is it a different strain, in other words, from the type the vaccine should prevent?

[AdamSelene235]

I had a smallpox vaccine when I was a little kid back in the 1950s. What's the problem here?

Well, one obvious problem is that your immunity to natural smallpox is most likely gone.

Even if you were vaccinated with natural smallpox last month, you would have still have no resistance to a weaponized strain. Such weaponized strains are stockpiled in ton quanities in oh so secure locations such as Kazakstan.

The Americas were conquered once with smallpox, lets not let it happen again.

[Gritty]

There may other reasons the public may not be afforded the chance of getting the vaccine before the first cases erupt;

(**adjusting tin foil hat**)

Perhaps there isn't nearly enough vaccine available and won't be and we don't want to admit it?

Or, maybe the vaccine has proven a failure in testing and if given, this will be revealed when there are no telltale symptoms of the vaccination "taking"?

Or, as 'vannrox' stipulates, the vaccine is ineffective against the military variant and releasing it will allow the bad guys to get it, analyze it, and deduce it is ineffective? If Saddam got a Soviet variant and has cultured it, this may be the case. We probably haven't developed a vaccine effective against all possibilites.

(**tin foil hat: ...off**)

[The Great Satan]

The feds' post-attack vaccination plan makes perfect sense. It makes sense for responding to an anthrax attack, though -- not a smallpox attack. Smallpox is a stalking horse for anthrax. Can't talk about anthrax too much -- people would connect the dots. Ergo, we prepare for anthrax while talking about smallpox.

Amusingly, the CDC director gave the game away the other day, with a slip of the tongue in an interview with PBS. See GETTING READY.

[Roscoe]

Drugs, drugs, drugs.

[Henchman]

Yup, de doctaz iz correct! However, the vaccine manufacturers will SELL it for use BEFOREHAND, I bet. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

[Henchman]

PS I am still working on this West Nile thing. Do I want Anthrax, Small Pox or West Nile vaccine (due in three years); do I want weaponized or military grade vaccines? Will a quick nuke end the problem?

[Cicero]

I've said this all along. If there's a smallpox attack, then the government will need to go to universal vaccination, whether we like it or not.

In the meantime, vaccine should be released to doctors and hospitals through the usual channels. The more citizens who voluntarily vaccinate their families beforehand, the less quickly the disease will spread.

I would vaccinate my family. This isn't the anthrax vaccine, which is dangerous and probably useless. It's a widely tested, safe vaccine with side effects that would be extremely rare except in AIDS patients and the like. And even AIDS patients would be much safer if the general population were vaccinated.

It's disgusting that Bush is letting this panel handle matters exactly the way clinton would have done.

[berkeleybeej]

Your post is very interesting. I think you have something there worth serious thinking.

[willyone]

This would be a good time to down size our nuclear arsenal. If you get my meaning. It is time to stop screwing around with UN permission and remove the problem. And I don't mean just Iraq.

[MrLeRoy]

Do you-all drug warriors

How did I get on your Drug Warrior list?

[Virginia-American]

You aren't, obviously. I just wanted the usual suspects' reaction to the gov't banning smallpox vaccine, and thought you might be interested. I should've been more precise, no offense intended.