BIO: Blue Ribbon Study Panel on Biodefense Will Provide Crucial Guidance to Strengthen Preparedness against Devastating Threats
Washington, D.C. (December 4, 2014) – Today marks the inaugural meeting of the Blue Ribbon Study Panel on Biodefense, a bipartisan panel co-chaired by former Senator Joe Lieberman and former Governor and Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge. Panelists include former Senator Tom Daschle, former Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna Shalala, former US Homeland Security Advisor Kenneth Wainstein, and Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) President and CEO and former Representative Jim Greenwood. The study will be directed by Dr. Robert Kadlec, former special assistant to the President for homeland security and senior director for biological defense policy in the White House Homeland Security Council.
The Panel will identify and recommend changes to U.S. policy and law to strengthen national biodefense and preparedness while optimizing resource investments with the goal of issuing a report in the spring of 2015.
“The efforts of this panel could not be more timely, as our nation continues to face growing challenges and threats from abroad, including infectious diseases such as Ebola and terrorist groups who have voiced a desire to obtain chemical and biological weapons,” said BIO President and CEO Jim Greenwood. “It is clearly necessary to assess our current biodefense capabilities and readiness to respond to such threats.”
“I look forward to working with panel co-chairs Senator Lieberman and Governor Ridge and my fellow panelists in the coming months as we hear from experts representing the spectrum of biodefense stakeholders to identify opportunities to improve our preparedness.”
Upcoming BIO Events
BIO Pacific Rim Summit on Industrial Biotechnology & Bioenergy
December 7-9, 2014
San Diego, CA
BIO CEO & Investor Conference
February 9-10, 2015
New York City, NY
BIO Asia International Conference
March 24-25, 2015
Tokyo, Japan
BIO International Convention
June 15-18, 2015
Philadelphia, PA
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