Pentagon rejects lawmakers' request to halt anthrax vaccinations

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By JOHN HUGHES, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (May 16, 2000 8:16 p.m. EDT http://www.nandotimes.com) - Nearly three dozen House members urged Defense Secretary William Cohen on Tuesday to stop vaccinating military personnel against anthrax until an improved vaccine is found.

The letter by Rep. Jack Metcalf, R-Wash., and signed by 34 colleagues said the vaccination program "is a flawed policy that should be immediately stopped," based on findings and criticisms from the General Accounting Office, American Public Health Association Governing Council and other sources.

The letter comes three months after a Feb. 17 report by the House Government Reform Committee's national security subcommittee urged the Defense Department to suspend the anthrax program until it obtains approval for an improved vaccine.

Metcalf spokesman Jim Troyer said the letter aimed to gather some common criticisms of the program in one place and attempted to pressure on the Defense Department to suspend the vaccinations.

Pentagon officials on Tuesday rejected Metcalf's request.

"Suspension of the program would recklessly jeopardize the safety of the very people for whom you are concerned," wrote Charles Cragin, acting undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, in a letter to Metcalf.

Anthrax is a disease that typically afflicts animals, especially sheep and cattle. When inhaled, dry anthrax spores, which can be put into weapons, can cause death in humans. The U.S. vaccine, licensed by the Food and Drug Administration in 1970 is given in a series of six shots over 18 months plus an annual booster.

In 1998, Defense Secretary William Cohen ordered all 2.4 million active duty and reserve troops to get shots of the anthrax vaccine, starting with soldiers most likely to encounter biological warfare overseas.

The military so far has immunized 570,000 people representing 1.6 million immunizations. About 703 people have filed an "adverse event report," meaning they cited some problem or reaction after the shots, the military said.

The vaccine has come under increasing scrutiny from lawmakers as soldiers have expressed concerns about taking the six-shot regimen. Complaints included fevers, muscle pain and dizziness. Reserve and National Guard pilots have said that morale was plummeting and colleagues would resign rather than take the vaccine.

But Pentagon and Food and Drug Administration officials have said repeatedly the vaccine is safe and effective. FDA officials also say there is no basis for demoting the approved vaccine to an investigational drug category.