The Department of Health and Human Services is buying 5 million additional doses of Anthrax Vaccine Adsorbed from the BioPort Corp., Lansing, Mich.
The purchase modifies an existing HHS contract with BioPort awarded in May 2005, also for 5 million doses, the agency said in a statement. The vaccine will be placed in the Strategic National Stockpile and will be available for use in the event of a bioterror anthrax incident. “Together with an already substantial supply of antibiotics, which is the nation's first line of defense against an anthrax attack, the additional [anthrax] vaccine will further diversify the stockpile's medical countermeasures,” according to the statement.
The HHS Office of Public Health Emergency Preparedness will manage the vaccine contract through Project BioShield. The 10 million doses will act as a bridge while another type of anthrax vaccine is developed, said HHS spokesman Bill Hall. If a physician suspects a case of anthrax, local and state public health departments should be contacted immediately, he said.