PROFESSOR: This in mind, what technological responses do
we have?
As Hughes mentioned, they're fairly limited.
My research has been on vaccines.
And I have determined that they are not
a first line of defense, particularly
for civilian populations.
They are useful to stabilize the situation
after an attack has occurred.
For example, once an agent has been identified,
it can be used--
a vaccine can be used to stem second waves of infection.
Vaccines can be used to protect first responders,
such as doctors, nurses, and emergency EMTs.
This will allow the medical system to continue to function.
Vaccines can also be used to permit re-entry of residents
into an infected city.
Of course, a successful biodefense program
using vaccines is predicated on the availability of vaccines.
And my research has demonstrated that we've
had a lot of problems with vaccine supply and innovation,
particularly over the past 20 years,
and particularly for a limited-use vaccines,
such as anthrax and smallpox, which is what we would
need to mitigate an attack.