Appendix A
Study Activities
COMMISSIONED WORK
In two areas, the committee commissioned additional work by outside experts. David L. Buckeridge of McGill University conducted a modeling exercise to compare the timeliness of detection of biological threats via environmental air sampling, clinical case finding, and syndromic surveillance. Industrial Economics, Incorporated (IEc), a professional services firm, conducted an analysis of costs of the BioWatch program and of surveillance activities to detect biological threats through the public health and health care sectors.
COMMITTEE MEETINGS
The committee held three information-gathering meetings in Washington, DC, during the period July 2008 through November 2008. During these meetings the committee received briefings from federal, state, and local government officials; medical and laboratory professionals; and academic and private-sector researchers regarding biological threats, bioaerosol detection technologies, clinical diagnostic testing, and surveillance and detection of disease threats in clinical settings and through public health systems.
The first meeting, held on July 30–31, 2008, included speakers involved in creating the legislation relevant to the committee’s charge and speakers from selected federal agencies and professional organizations, as well as
speakers presenting the scientific perspective on bioaerosol detection technology and testing and a review of federal biosurveillance activities.
At the second meeting, held September 22–24, 2008, the committee heard from speakers on the topics of bioterrorism risk and risk analysis, BioWatch as a risk-management response, the basis for the BioWatch approach, the current operational approach and future plans, environmental monitoring and public health surveillance and response, surveillance in public health and health care, and laboratory roles in BioWatch and in infectious disease surveillance in the public health and health care systems. Speakers were chosen for their expertise in their fields.
At the third meeting, held November 3–5, 2008, the committee heard from speakers on the topics of critical information needs for decision makers, index case recognition, point-of-care diagnostics, and other operational approaches to environmental monitoring for bioterrorism. The committee also heard briefings on aspects of the threat, on aerosol plume modeling, and on past and projected costs for BioWatch.
The fourth and fifth meetings, held December 2–3, 2008, in Irvine, California, and January 26–27, 2009, in Washington, DC, respectively, were deliberative and writing meetings during which the committee developed and refined its recommendations and the members of the committee worked together to draft the report. The committee also kept in close contact by telephone and electronic communication throughout the study.
Invited Speakers
The following individuals were invited speakers at meetings of the committee:
Amy Altman, Ph.D.
Luminex Corporation
Atar Baer, Ph.D.
Seattle-King County Department of Health, WA
Vickie Baselski, Ph.D.
University of Tennessee
Paul Benda
Pentagon Force Protection Agency
Steven Bennett, Ph.D.
Department of Homeland Security
Diane Berry, Ph.D.
Department of Homeland Security
Debora Boyle, D.V.M., Ph.D.
University of Minnesota
Michael Brown, Ph.D.
Los Alamos National Laboratory
David Buckeridge, M.D., Ph.D.
McGill University
Michael Bullard, M.D.
University of Alberta, Edmonton
Svetlana Deyneka, M.D., M.P.H.
North Carolina Division of Public Health
Pamela Diaz, M.D.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Jeffrey Engel, M.D.
North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services
Hawazin Faruki, Dr.P.H.
Laboratory Corporation of America
Martin Fenstersheib, M.D., M.P.H.
Santa Clara County Health Department, CA
P. Joseph Gibson, Ph.D., M.P.H.
Marion County Health Department, IN
Mary Gilchrist, Ph.D.
Massachusetts Department of Public Health
Chevelle Glymph, M.P.H.
Washington, DC, Department of Health
Ray Gordon
Department of Homeland Security
James Hadler, M.D., M.P.H.
Public Health Consultant
Steven Hanna, Ph.D.
Harvard School of Public Health
Katherine Heilpern, M.D.
Emory University
Penny Hitchcock, D.V.M.
Department of Homeland Security
Harvey Holmes, Ph.D.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Robert Hooks
Department of Homeland Security
Richard Hopkins, M.D., M.S.P.H.
Florida Department of Health
William Jenkins, Jr.
Government Accountability Office (GAO)
CAPT Malcolm Johns
Department of Homeland Security
Robert Kadlec, M.D., M.T.M.H., M.A.
White House
Lawrence Kerr, Ph.D.
National Counterproliferation Center
Sara Klucking, Ph.D.
Department of Homeland Security
Gerald Kost, M.D., Ph.D.
University of California, Davis–Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Frances Ligler, D.Phil., D.Sc.
Naval Research Laboratory
COL Mark Malatesta
Department of Defense
Patrick Mendonca
U.S. Postal Service
Michael Osterholm, Ph.D., M.P.H.
University of Minnesota
Tara O’Toole, M.D., M.P.H.
Center for Biosecurity, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
Herminia Palacio, M.D., M.P.H.
Harris County Public Health and Environmental Services, Texas
Art Papier, M.D.
Logical Images, Inc.
Sudha Pottumarthy, Ph.D.
Houston Public Health Laboratory, Texas
Rep. David Price, Ph.D.
U.S. House of Representatives
Stephen Quake, D.Phil.
Stanford University
Barry Rhodes, Ph.D.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Edward Rhyne
Department of Homeland Security
Jeffrey Runge, M.D.
Department of Homeland Security
Mary Shaffran, M.P.A.
Association of Public Health Laboratories
Denise Sockwell, M.S.P.H.
Virginia Department of Health
Daniel Sosin, M.D., M.P.H.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Jeffrey Stiefel, Ph.D.
Department of Homeland Security
Jerome Tokars, M.D., M.P.H.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
INTERIM REPORT
As called for by the Statement of Task, the committee prepared an interim report that outlined initial progress on addressing the major issues under consideration by the committee. The report was prepared at a point before conclusions or recommendations had been developed. It was released on February 10, 2009, and it is available at http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=12599.