BioPort wins $245 million contract to supply anthrax vaccine

[HARDCORE]

Now that this has potentially been cleared for the public, this ought to prove to get real interesting....


Snip: "Kramer didn't reveal how many doses will be supplied under the contract, but said the government has the option of increasing the number within the three-year period."

http://www.mlive.com/newsflash/michi...10736909491651
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BioPort wins $245 million contract to supply anthrax vaccine

The Associated Press
1/9/2004, 6:24 p.m. ET

WASHINGTON (AP) ? BioPort Corp. said Friday that it has entered into a three-year, $245 million contract with the Pentagon to provide anthrax vaccine following a government ruling that the vaccine is safe.

The Lansing, Mich.-based company has been the nation's sole supplier of an anthrax vaccine for years but has struggled with safety and reliability issues.

BioPort President Bob Kramer said Friday the contract "demonstrates the Pentagon's faith in our company."

The contract was officially awarded Dec. 31, Kramer said, but the future of
the Pentagon's anthrax vaccination program was in doubt until this week. The
program was halted Dec. 22 by U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan, who said
the
vaccine was experimental and was being used by the military in an unapproved
manner.

Sullivan reversed that ruling Jan. 7 after the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration announced the vaccine is safe and effective for use against
inhaled
anthrax. Sullivan said the FDA's timing was suspicious but decided the
agency had
addressed his concerns.

The Pentagon has vaccinated more than 1 million soldiers with the anthrax
vaccine since 1998. Hundreds of service members have been punished or
discharged
for refusing the vaccine because of safety concerns.

Under Sullivan's new ruling, the six anonymous military personnel who
brought
the suit challenging the military's authority to require the vaccinations
will not have to be vaccinated.

Kramer didn't reveal how many doses will be supplied under the contract, but
said the government has the option of increasing the number within the
three-year period. The contract allows other agencies to obtain the vaccine,
including the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security.