{"database": "openregs", "table": "congressional_record", "rows": [["CREC-2006-12-27-pt1-PgE2241-2", "2006-12-27", 109, 2, null, null, "PANDEMIC AND ALL-HAZARDS PREPAREDNESS ACT", "HOUSE", "EXTENSIONS", "ALLOTHER", "E2241", "E2241", "[{\"name\": \"Mike Rogers\", \"role\": \"speaking\"}]", null, "152 Cong. Rec. E2241", "Congressional Record, Volume 152 Issue 136 (Wednesday, December 27, 2006)\n\n[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 136 (Wednesday, December 27, 2006)]\n[Extensions of Remarks]\n[Page E2241]\nFrom the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]\n\n               PANDEMIC AND ALL-HAZARDS PREPAREDNESS ACT\n\n                                 ______\n\n                               speech of\n\n                            HON. MIKE ROGERS\n\n                              of michigan\n\n                    in the house of representatives\n\n                        Friday, December 8, 2006\n\n  Mr. ROGERS of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support\nof the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act and specifically the\nBiodefense and Pandemic Vaccine and Drug Development Act.\n  I would like to thank Chairman Barton, and the Energy and Commerce\nCommittee staff for their support. I would also like to extend a\nspecial thanks to my colleague Congresswoman Anna Eshoo for her work on\nthe issue.\n  Biological weapons have been proven to work, are capable of causing\nmassive disaster, are relatively cheap, and are increasingly easy to\ndesign, build and disseminate.\n  The materials and technical know-how needed to make a bio-weapon that\ncould infect hundreds of thousands of people are already widely\ndistributed around the planet, and the number of people who possess the\nexpertise needed to create bioweapons is rapidly growing as\nbiotechnology and pharmaceutical research and production expand into\ndeveloping countries.\n  Preventing either a natural epidemic or a bioterrorist attack is,\nunfortunately, unlikely. Therefore, the Nation's ability to rapidly and\neffectively respond in the face of a bio-security crisis must be a\ncentral pillar in our bio-security strategy.\n  Medicines and vaccines that can counter illnesses caused by exposure\nto bioterror agents are obviously an essential component of biodefense\nand would be critical to controlling the spread of contagious disease.\n  This legislation will enable the government to better develop,\nprocure, and make available countermeasures to chemical, biological,\nradiological and nuclear agents for use in a public health emergency.\n  Bioterror countermeasures for agents of terrorism have no market\nother than the government. This legislation will provide assurance to\ncompanies that the government is fully engaged and a willing and able\nbusiness partner.\n  This legislation will speed up the development and procurement\nprocess by reorganizing and enhancing these responsibilities into the\nBiomedical Advanced Research and Development Agency, BARDA.\n  1. BARDA would create a single point of authority within government.\n  2. BARDA would streamline the approval and acquisition process to\nhelp bridge the ``valley of death'' for bio-pharmaceutical research.\n  3. BARDA is an aggressive partnering with universities, research\ninstitutions and industry on the advanced development of promising\ndrugs and vaccines and would of these countermeasures.\n  As the Chairman and my colleagues on both sides of our aisle know,\nthe House passed version of this legislation also included specific\nauthority under BioShield for HHS to enter into procurement contracts\nwith multiple companies for multiple products and technologies.\n  We all know from lessons learned that this is a complicated and\nuncertain process. These vaccines and other medical countermeasures are\nonly in the early stage of development and history suggests that most\nwill not be successfully developed or only a few will receive FDA\napproval.\n  That is why the House-passed bill included a provision intended to\ndirect a risk mitigation strategy that the Department not put all their\neggs in one basket.\n  Is it the understanding that while the bill passed by the Senate had\nno similar provision, that currently the BioShield statute provides\nauthority for the Department to enter into multiple procurement\ncontracts for products and technologies for the development and\nacquisition of countermeasures and that this is an important risk\nmitigation strategy for the government.\n  I have been in communication with Senator Burr and he agrees with\nthis policy.\n  I urge your support of this important piece of legislation.\n\n                          ____________________"]], "columns": ["granule_id", "date", "congress", "session", "volume", "issue", "title", "chamber", "granule_class", "sub_granule_class", "page_start", "page_end", "speakers", "bills", "citation", "full_text"], "primary_keys": ["granule_id"], "primary_key_values": ["CREC-2006-12-27-pt1-PgE2241-2"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9921949822455645, "source": "Federal Register API & Regulations.gov API", "source_url": "https://www.federalregister.gov/developers/api/v1", "license": "Public Domain (U.S. Government data)", "license_url": "https://www.regulations.gov/faq"}