Meeting the Moment: Biodefense Policy, Procurement, and Public Health

The Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense will host a public meeting on Meeting the Moment: Biodefense Policy, Procurement, and Public Health in Washington DC on 5 December 2023.

This meeting will focus on addressing vulnerabilities in biodefense in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Topics to be discussed include biodefense policies and activities at the Department of Defense, federal stockpile evaluation and decision-making for smallpox medical countermeasures, needed authorities of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the need for better national leadership of our biodefense in light of its performance during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Ongoing conflicts abroad – including the recent onset of war between Israel and Hamas – and the persistent biological weapons aspirations of enemy nations highlight the need for continued vigilance, reflection, and improvement in our ability to address biological threats,” said former U.S. Senator and Commission Co-Chair Joe Lieberman. “The Department of Defense released the results of their Biodefense Posture Review in August, with dozens of recommendations for enhancing the protection of warfighters, situational awareness of the threat, and support for civilian authorities. The Commission is especially interested in learning at this meeting from Assistant Secretary of Defense Rosenblum more about the Biodefense Council that the Department stood up to facilitate implementation of these recommendations and enhance coordination across the Department.”

The meeting will feature remarks by:

• The Honorable Deborah G. Rosenblum, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Defense Programs, Department of Defense
• The Honorable W. Craig Vanderwagen, Managing Director, East West Protection, LLC, and former Assistant Secretary for Preparedness Response, Department of Health and Human Services
• Julie L. Gerberding, MD, MPH, CEO, Foundation for the National Institutes of Health, and former Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Jeff Reczek, Director, Washington Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Laura Efros, PhD, Vice President, U.S. Government Affairs, Bavarian Nordic
• Paul Williams, Senior Vice President, Products Business, Emergent BioSolutions
• Jay Varma, MD, Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, SIGA Technologies, Inc.

“Our former colleagues on Capitol Hill continue to debate how best to address the biological threat,” said former Congressman and meeting Co-Chair Fred Upton. “As Congress considers federal roles and responsibilities, and as our Commission reassesses our 2015 National Blueprint for Biodefense, strong leadership and additional authorities are required to solve the problems that arose during the COVID-19 pandemic and better defend the Nation against biological weapons from enemy nations and terrorist organizations.”

Please visit the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense Meeting the Moment: Biodefense Policy, Procurement, and Public Health event page to register. This meeting will not be live-streamed.