As the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Tommy Thompson oversees many of the key agencies fighting
bioterrorism, including the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the Food and
Drug Administration (FDA) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
As the number of confirmed anthrax cases grew in October, Thompson came under fire for his role in managing the government's response to the scare. Specifically, the CDC was criticized for failing to take adequate steps to protect postal workers in Washington, D.C.
When an envelope containing anthrax-laden powder was discovered in the Hart Senate Office Building, the CDC quickly quarantined the building and administered antibiotics to staffers there. But the CDC declined to take similar steps at the postal processing facility through which the powdery package had passed on its way to Capitol Hill, claiming such precautions were unnecessary.
Several days later, two postal employees from the facility were discovered to have contracted inhalation anthrax, the most deadly form of the disease. Both died the following week. Thompson defended the CDC, saying the agency had acted on the best information at its disposal at the time. Up until then, there had been no evidence to demonstrate that anthrax-tainted envelopes posed a health threat prior to being opened.
Thompson also has played a key role in the government's efforts to stockpile antibiotics for future use. The secretary, who describes himself as a "tough negotiator," sealed a deal on October 24 with the company that has the patent on ciprofloxacin, the primary antibiotic (see "How Do Antibiotics Work?") being used to treat anthrax (see "Anthrax 101: What Is It And What Can It Do To Us?"). Under the agreement, Cipro maker Bayer will sell the government 100 million pills at 95 cents each, well below the company's usual price of $1.83.
According to a recent report in The New York Times, Thompson is now overseeing government efforts to stockpile enough smallpox vaccines for every American, some 300 million doses in all.
Prior to becoming secretary, Thompson served as governor of Wisconsin for 14 years. In that role, he received national attention for his groundbreaking efforts to reform welfare within the state.
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An MTV News Staff report
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