The Honorable Rick Santorum
120 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510-3804
Re: THE DOD ANTHRAX VACCINATION IMMUNIZATION PROGRAM
Senator Santorum:
I am copying this letter to other concerned parties, elected representatives,
and several newspapers.
How can you so completely support the current Anthrax immunization program? The vaccine is not as nearly as safe and effective as the Department of Defense leads us to believe. That is, if one can even justify vaccinating every last service member with a vaccine originally intended to protect mill worker's skin from Anthrax contracted from wool! Why change our military doctrine from one of deterrence, to one of vaccination? It cannot even be said that it will protect American Troops from the different potential Anthrax strains, let alone other Biological Warfare threats. The facts rebuking this program are obvious to those whom have done any significant research into the matter. The hypocrisy of this program is too profound to ignore!
Department of Defense officials have changed their viewpoint
on the current vaccine in order to suit the wishes of their contemporaries.
"Military officials told Glenn's committee
in August 1989 that the only available anthrax vaccine was not
suited to mass troop vaccinations because of a "higher than
normal rate of reactogenicity," or adverse medical effects,
and its relative lack of effectiveness once troops were exposed
to the germ."(1)
What exactly did Department of Defense officials tell Senator
John Glenn's committee before the early days of Desert Shield?
Why has safety and efficacy information concerning the very same
vaccine changed so dramatically?
"The cornerstone of our defense against
this biologic agent is the anthrax vaccine, which has been licensed
by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for nearly 30 years.
This vaccine has an excellent safety record and is highly effective."
"This is not a medical program - it is a line commanders'
program to prevent combat casualties and keep our forces ready
for battle. It is also a program for our soldiers, sailors, airmen,
and marines - to keep them safe and free from the consequences
of biologic warfare."(2)
According to the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health
Operations Policy, preventive medicine in the form of Anthrax
vaccination does not fall under the pretext of a medical program.
What a concept! What safety record is Major General Claypool referring
to in his July 21st 1999 testimony? Many Gulf War Veteran vaccination
records concerning Anthrax vaccine are missing in action (about
150,000 service members were vaccinated in total with at least
one dosage). Have you seen the figures concerning the staggering
number of Gulf War Illness claims?
In 1994, the Senate Committee on Veteran's Affairs concluded
that our Anthrax Vaccination Program was a huge unknown concerning
safety and efficacy.
"Although anthrax vaccine had been
considered approved prior to the Persian Gulf War, it was rarely
used. Therefore, its safety, particularly when given to thousands
of soldiers in conjunction with other vaccines, is not well established.
Anthrax vaccine should continue to be considered as a potential
cause for undiagnosed illnesses in Persian Gulf military personnel
because many of the support troops received anthrax vaccine, and
because the DOD believes that the incidence of undiagnosed illnesses
in support troops may be higher than that in combat troops."
"Anthrax vaccine is an FDA-approved vaccine that is considered
safe and effective for individuals whose skin may come in contact
with animal products such as hides, hair, or bones likely to contain
the anthrax infection. It is also recommended for veterinarians
and others who are likely to touch infected animals. (Note 61)
However, the vaccine's effectiveness against inhaled anthrax is
unknown. Unfortunately, when anthrax is used as a biological weapon,
it is likely to be aerosolized and thus inhaled. Therefore, the
efficacy of the vaccine against biological warfare is unknown."(3)
The House Government Reform Subcommittee report of February
2000 (entitled THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE ANTHRAX VACCINE IMMUNIZATION
PROGRAM: UNPROVEN FORCE PROTECTION) drew similar conclusions to
the 1994 Senate report.
"Because the anthrax vaccine is still
being studied as a potential causative or contributing factor
in Gulf War veterans illnesses 1 , the Subcommittee measured the
program against this standard: Any expanded use of the same vaccine
should be undertaken only with the greatest care and only to the
extent necessary."
"Based on the testimonial and documentary record 2 , the
Subcommittee finds the AVIP a well-intentioned but overwrought
response to the threat of anthrax as a biological weapon. Against
the so-called asymmetric threats to U. S. conventional military
superiority posed by a growing range of chemical and biological
weapons, the anthrax vaccine program represents a medical Maginot
Line, a fixed fortification protecting against attack from only
one direction."(4)
Why are these reports being ignored by so many of our elected
representatives? Are Department of Defense briefings that slick?
Are they so scary that something, anything, can be substituted
for safely and effectively protecting our troops? Have you, or
has anyone on your staff, even seen these Senate and House reports?
Perhaps it is just very tempting for elected representatives like
you to follow the Department of Defense money and power curve
wherever it leads.
Key Department of Defense players Arthur Friedlander and
Philip Brachman are given credit for writing the Anthrax section
of the textbook Vaccines. This particular section was not included
in the first edition published in 1988 (prior to the Gulf War).
However, it appears both in the second edition published in 1994,
and is repeated in the third edition published in 1999.
"The current vaccine against anthrax
is unsatisfactory for several reasons. The vaccine is composed
of an undefined crude culture supernatant adsorbed to aluminum
hydroxide. There has been no quantification of the protective
antigen content of the vaccine or of any of the other constituents,
so the degree of purity is unknown. Standardization is determined
by an animal potency test. The undefined nature of the vaccine
and the presence of constituents that may be undesirable may account
for the level of reactogenicity observed."(5)
Furthermore, the Institute of Medicine dismissed the list
of Department of Defense Anthrax Vaccine safety studies in a letter
to MG R. West as "insufficient evidence
to determine whether an association does or does not exist between
anthrax vaccination and long-term adverse health outcomes."
(6)
As a registered Republican, I am voting for Democratic Representative Ron Klink for U.S. Senator in November. Representative Klink signed on as a co-sponsor of H.R. 2548, The Anthrax Vaccination Moratorium Act. I realize that many other issues of great importance face us. However, Ron Klink demonstrates the responsibility required of our elected representatives on this issue. You sir, do not.
Do not simply forward this letter to the Department of Defense for a programmed response, please!
Sincerely,
John F. Sorg
A concerned Gulf War Veteran
Enc: References
Santorum Staff reply to an AVIP inquiry
References
1 Smith, R. Jeffery, "Army faulted
on germ warfare research: Development of defenses said to target
unlikely biological threats," Washington Post, 29 Jan. 1991,
A17.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/searches/mainsrch.htm
2 United States Senate, A staff report
prepared for the Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Is military research
hazardous to veterans' health? 103rd Congress, 2nd Session, December
8, 1994.
http://www.gulfwarvets.com/senate.htm
3 Statement by Major General G. Robert
Claypool before the Subcommittee on National Security, Veterans'
Affairs and International Relations Committee on Government Reform,
United States House of Representatives, July 21, 1999.
http://www.house.gov/reform/ns/hearings/testimony/claypool.htm
4 United States House of Representatives, Subcommittee on National Security, Veterans Affairs and International Relations, Committee on Government Reform and Oversight: The Department of Defense Anthrax Vaccine Immunization Program: Unproven force protection. February 17, 2000.
5 Brachman PS, Friedlander AM. Anthrax. In: Plotkin SA, Orenstein WA, editors. Vaccines, 3rd ed. Philadelphia: WB Saunders; 1999.
6 Letter Report from Institute of Medicine
Committee on Health Effects Associated with Exposures During the
Gulf War dated March 30, 2000, Institute of Medicine, Washington,
D.C. (submitted to Major General Randall L. West).
http://www.nap.edu/html/anthrax_vaccine/
June 20, 2000
Thank you for your interest in this matter. I can assure the anthrax vaccine, as well as other veteran and military issues, are of paramount importance to Senator Santorum.
As you know, anthrax is a serious infectious disease that takes several forms. Almost all cases of inhalation anthrax, in which treatment was begun after patients have exhibited symptoms, have resulted in death, regardless of post-exposure treatment. The best treatment is to have immunity prior to exposure through vaccinations, using an FDA-licensed vaccine. So, Senator Santorum does support this measure as a way to protect Americans in an increasingly dangerous and hostile world. Our armed forces are a target of terrorists throughout the Middle East and elsewhere.
You may be interested to know that on April 27, 2000, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released the results of three separate studies, the CDC declared that the vaccine resulted in no unexpected adverse reactions. According to the CDC, a small percentage of service members did complain of muscle or joint aches, headache or fatigue after being vaccinated, but there have been no reported cases of long term adverse reactions attributed to the vaccine itself. The Senator's chief concern is the safety of our men and women who are in hostile environments in various corners of the world.
Sincerely,
Brian Aiello
Santorum 2000
Contents Official Documents Congressional Testimony Position Papers Troop Experiences News Articles Government Contact Information Opinion Informative WWW Sites Bioterrorism Today Benefit versus Risk
Department of Defense Anthrax Vaccination
Moratorium Act (H.R. 2548)
Adobe Acrobat Version of HR2548
Last revised: September 2000