County plans for bioterror

By Sharon Salyer

Herald Writer

The Snohomish Health District will oversee a new five-county bioterrorism team, part of the state and national response to last fall’s anthrax attacks.

The health district board has approved hiring the six-member team, which will coordinate health monitoring and bioterrorism preparedness efforts in Snohomish, Island, Skagit, Whatcom and San Juan counties.

"It’s really an ambitious plan," said Dave Peterson, director of the district’s Communicable Disease Division. "It’s a big, big undertaking, not just for us, but for the whole state."

Money to pay for the team is expected to come from the federal government. So far, Washington state has received a federal commitment of $20.5 million for bioterrorism efforts, said Bill White, assistant secretary for the state Department of Health.

As the designated lead health agency in the five-county region, an estimated $600,000 is expected to be sent to the Snohomish Health District to cover the costs of a regional bioterrorism team until August 2003, said Dr. M. Ward Hinds, who heads the countywide health agency.

"We see this as a very large and very new responsibility for us," Hinds said.

The 15-month cost of salaries and other expenses for the regional bioterrorism team is expected to be $450,000, he said.

The remaining $150,000 is designated for bioterrorism planning in Snohomish County, he said.

The team will outline a regional preparedness plan and coordinate with cities, fire districts, law enforcement agencies, hospitals and medical clinics throughout the five-county area, which has a population of nearly 1 million people.

The regional team is in addition to a four-member bioterrorism team approved by the Snohomish Health District board in November, which will focus exclusively on Snohomish County. Its first-year budget is $238,000.

Among other duties, the local team will regularly survey 800 doctors and emergency room workers at the four hospitals in Snohomish County in search of suspicious illnesses, and help coordinate the public health response when problems are found.

You can call Herald Writer Sharon Salyer at 425-339-3486 or send e-mail to salyer@heraldnet.com.

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