Think bioterrorism is scary? Who would have thought that the counter measure — large scale smallpox vaccine programs — would turn out to be sinister too? This is a story of falling on your own sword. Or when bioterrrorism preparedness goes asunder.

The public health scare of smallpox vaccines is way up there in the top 10 Bush snafus of 2003. But except for New York Times editorials on the subject (ie: "Missing the Smallpox Goal," May 12 2003) here and there, the media is mum about it. As a parent, or a citizen, or a teacher, what do you do when the remedy is perhaps as fatal as the disease? Break out the vaccine reference guides, and start checking the facts. Unfortunately, you may not like what you find out.

Who is BD?

"Almost 50 years ago, BD developed the first disposable syringes for mass delivery of the Salk polio vaccine" begins a full page ad in Scientific American. The ad shows a Depression-era photo of a white man in a white coat giving the small pox vaccine while some sad eyed, stricken-looking children wait their turn with rolled-up sleeves.

"Now [the ad continues], BD is partnering with governments worldwide to challenge the threats posed by bioterrorism. From the earliest civilizations through most of the last century, smallpox claimed the lives of untold millions. By 1980, this virus had been eradicated. Yet today, the threat of smallpox looms once again as a possible weapon in a bioterrorist attack."

"And, [the chirpy ad copy goes on] in the United States, New Jersey has become the first sate in the nation to pilot the BD® Bio-Terror Preparedness Network, an innovative system for centralized tracking of smallpox vaccinations."

This enthusiasm for so called "Bioterrorism Preparedness" was before people started dying from the smallpox vaccine. In March 2003, the Associated Press reported that three people died of heart attacks linked to the vaccine. To paraphrase, health experts began to investigate a possible link between the vaccine and heart problems that occurred in 17 people, including three fatalities. Two of those were health care workers in private hospitals. The third, announced by the Pentagon, was a 55-year-old man.

Caveat Emptor

Since then, most health professionals concluded that the risks of the smallpox vaccine greatly exceeded the immediate benefit and suggested taking precautions. The immunization program was greeted with cautious skepticism very early in the vaccine program (Jan. 2002), when health professionals warned against the vaccine, publishing articles at the New England Journal of Medicine and registering their concerns with the CDC. These days, even West Wing staff are unwilling to roll up their sleeves for team smallpox. John Marburger, Bush's science advisor told SEED Magazine that he will not be getting a shot because "I am not a first responder. I don't expect to come into contact with smallpox."