Bioterror alert

The US will spend $1 billion this year upgrading its health service to
counter the threat of bioterrorism. The money will go to state governments to
rebuild the country’s surveillance network for infectious diseases and pay for
more labs and communications facilities for public health officials. Every urban
area with a population over 500,000 will get an epidemiologist. Emergency
response plans, research into vaccines and emergency medical stockpiles will
also benefit, says health secretary Tommy Thompson.