Missouri releases money to help fight bioterrorism threat

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Money originally cut from the state health department's budget has been restored to help fund Missouri's preparation for bioterrorism attacks.

The Department of Health and Senior Services had more than $163,000 released by the state in order to hire additional staff to deal with potential threats.

Additional personnel specializing in disease investigations and data surveillance will be hired in the wake of a series of confirmed anthrax cases from Florida to New York, said Nanci Gonder, a department spokeswoman.

To date, the State Public Health Laboratory in Jefferson City has tested 51 different reports from across the state for potential anthrax contamination. All have come up negative.

But Gonder said the additional resources authorized by the release of the money will improve Missouri's readiness.

"We're doing a lot of this now, to an extent, but this would allow us to be much more prepared," Gonder said. "We're very, very busy with lots of reports to investigate, but we also want to be building capacity because it doesn't look like this is going to go away anytime soon."

The release of the money comes two months after Gov. Bob Holden's office announced cuts of $358 million from the state's $19 billion budget. The health department's withholding was $6.2 million.

Technically, Holden's cuts are "withholdings," meaning the money could be released if economic conditions improve.

Jerry Nachtigal, Holden's spokesman, said releasing the money to fight bioterrorism was considered a top priority.

"They have been literally working around the clock since September 11 with anthrax scares and other preparations for dealing with the bioterrorism. This was money that was vitally important to keep that going," Nachtigal said.

A series of other security measures within state government has been ongoing, including the issuance of security badges for entry to state buildings and an increased law enforcement presence.

State Budget Director Brian Long said various departments involved in the security updates have been providing cost estimates to his office. Final totals could be available later this week, he said.

The state currently has about $30 million in a supplementary account that could be tapped by state agencies seeking ways to pay for additional security measures.

Meanwhile, Holden is expected to announce as early as next week the makeup of a Missouri Security Panel, which will consist of officials from state government and local law enforcement, to improve communication and decision-making. The panel also is expected to conduct an intensive statewide security audit.

The panel will be headed by retired Army Col. Tim Daniel, Holden's adviser for homeland security.