Countermeasures
Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) study findings revealed the RTS,S malaria vaccine could bolster protective antibodies production upon subsequent parasite infection.
The work involved the authors investigating how vaccination impacts natural immunity to the parasite upon... Read More »
National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has earmarked $600 million for its first exascale supercomputer, which will perform research to maintain the nation’s nuclear weapons stockpile.
The NNSA, housed under the Department of Energy, has signed an agreement with Cray Inc. to build El... Read More »
The Strategies to Address Antibiotic Resistance (STAAR) Act was reintroduced to the Senate this week, raising the issue of what to do in the face of growing antibiotic resistance.
The legislation was introduced by U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) in an attempt to increase data collection,... Read More »
Smallpox, eradicated globally in 1980, is on the cusp of a comeback thanks to advances in synthetic biology. Residual immunity in individuals who were previously vaccinated could mitigate the impact of a smallpox outbreak, but “a high degree of uncertainty” exists regarding the duration and... Read More »
A Colorado State University (CSU) study maintains the advent of Rift Valley fever in the state would deliver significant consequences for humans and livestock.
The virus is a global health concern caused by infected mosquitos and the handling of infected animal carcasses. Every 10 to 15 years,... Read More »
Biotechnology firm Public Health Vaccines, LLC has secured a Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) contract of up to $43.6 million to develop a single-dose Nipah virus vaccine.
Public Health Vaccine is slated to partner with Crozet BioPharma during the initiative while up to $9... Read More »
In a study published in the International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents, a scientific team reported that continued resistance to two critical antibiotic types that are still widely distributed in Southeast Asia is raising the risk of untreatable infections.
Carbapenems and polymyxins are being... Read More »
Legislation introduced Monday would provide evidence-based solutions to gun violence nationwide.
The Gun Safety Board and Research Act establishes a board responsible for conducting research aimed at reducing gun violence and evaluating federal and state policy proposals to identify gaps in gun... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) developed a corrective action plan on contracting practices in the DoD’s Office of Net Assessment.
The plan was developed at the request of Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), who sent a letter to then-Acting Secretary Mark Esper in July seeking more information on... Read More »
Acting Deputy Secretary David P. Pekoske and Attorney General William P. Barr recently participated in the Five Country Ministerial in London, England, to address emerging global security threats.
Pekoske and Barr joined Home Affairs, Interior Security and Immigration Ministers of the Five Eyes... Read More »
Hazard preparedness in Maryland will benefit from $23.8 million in federal grants recently announced by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
The funds will be broken up into seven specific targets. The State Homeland Security Program, Urban Area Security Initiative, Emergency... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Transportation and the U.S. Department of Commerce recently awarded more than $109 million in grants through the 911 Grant Program to 34 states and two tribal nations.
Funding will be used to upgrade 911 call centers to Next Generation 911 capabilities. Upgrades include... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), chairman of House Homeland Security Committee, met with Acting DHS Secretary Kevin McAleenan this week to discuss the threat of domestic terrorism following recent shootings in Gilroy, Calif., El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio.
The Aug. 13 meeting took place in... Read More »
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel recently located and tracked a cocaine-filled go-fast style vessel in the Western Caribbean, resulting in a 8,791 pound, $114.6 million seizure.
Officials said a CBP Air and Marine Operations (AMO) P-3 Orion Long Range Tracker crew assigned to the... Read More »
A new study published in the journal iScience reveals that the already Food and Drug Administration-approved drug nitazoxanide may hold promise as an Ebola treatment.
Nitazoxanide, or NTZ, is not traditionally used for Ebola treatment. Rather, it is a treatment for gastrointestinal infections... Read More »
U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee leaders have written to the U.S. Comptroller General requesting that the Government Accountability Office examine the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) new biodetection technology system known as BioDetection 21.
The BioDetection 21 pilot program... Read More »
Apprehensions along the U.S. Southwest border declined 20 percent in July, the second consecutive month of decreases, Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Kevin McAleenan announced on Aug. 8.
The reductions are attributed mainly to an agreement with Mexico that was signed in June intended to... Read More »
The U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center's Global Positioning Systems Directorate has given Raytheon's new GPS modules and receivers security certification, the company said on Wednesday.
The modernized modules and receivers will provide military aircraft, ships, ground vehicles and... Read More »
BAE Systems on Thursday said it was awarded a prime contractor position with the U.S. Navy as a means of bolstering maritime operations and flight safety systems aboard new aircraft carriers and large deck amphibious ships.
BAE Systems was one of three contractors presented the opportunity to... Read More »
A group of Republican senators led by U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA) sent a letter on Aug. 6 to U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, asserting their support for the continued expansion of the F-35 joint strike fighter program.
“Since its inception over 25 years ago, the F-35 program has depended... Read More »
The Florida Department of Health (DOH) in Miami-Dade County has issued mosquito advisories this week after confirmation of a locally acquired case of dengue virus in the region.
As the DOH-Miami-Dade, Miami-Dade County Mosquito Control and Habitat Management Division continues surveillance and... Read More »
Lockheed Martin has secured a $320 million Missile Defense Agency contract to continue the Ballistic Missile Defense System’s (BMDS) progression.
The effort would focus on the Command, Control, Battle Management and Communications (C2BMC) system.
“The critical mission of missile defense... Read More »
Four democratic legislators are calling on their colleagues to pass their bill banning high-capacity gun magazines holding more than 10 rounds.
Reps. Diana DeGette (D-CO), Ted Deutch (D-FL), and Dina Titus (D-NV) and Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) are urging passage of the Keep Americans Safe Act,... Read More »
New Jersey will receive $57.6 million grants from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for emergency preparedness, terrorism prevention, and bolstering port security and transit security efforts.
“Because of our state’s proximity to New York and Philadelphia, as well as our major... Read More »
The Sabin Vaccine Institute and GSK announced this week exclusive agreements for Sabin to advance the development of three GSK candidate vaccines against Ebola Zaire, Ebola Sudan, and the Marburg virus.
“These agreements with the Sabin Vaccine Institute are an important next step in the fight... Read More »
With research on hold at its Fort Detrick, Md., location following a federal-government-ordered shutdown, the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) this week began what it deems “a major re-set of its biological safety program,” which provides leading-edge... Read More »
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently identified several challenges related to the nation’s ability to detect and respond to biological events. These hurdles transcend what any one federal department or agency can individually address.
The GAO found four precarious areas,... Read More »
Citing the state’s desire to upgrade California’s analog 9-1-1 system microwave network to a digital platform, Gov. Gavin Newsom recently touted a $1 billion investment in emergency preparedness and response funding.
During a 9-1-1 call center tour at the San Francisco Department of... Read More »
Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Rick Scott (R-FL) recently forwarded correspondence to President Donald Trump to certify to Congress that Colombia is committed to working with authorities to combat the illegal drug trade.
Colombia, who the senators said is one of the most proactive nations... Read More »
The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) instituted last week a new final rule, altering its 2020 Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) in a way that changes how Medicare services are paid for, along with greater payment for newer antimicrobial drugs.
The new rule... Read More »
The U.S. Senate passed a bill this week that would allow federal workers to assist the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) with Urban Search and Rescue (US&R) efforts.
The National Urban Search and Rescue Parity Act would override a policy that currently bars federal employees from... Read More »
Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO) is encouraging the Department of Defense to reestablish the U.S. Space Command in Colorado and use its existing military assets to address emerging space threats.
Gardner recently forwarded correspondence to Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, highlighting Colorado’s... Read More »
The Air Force awarded Monday a contract to Raytheon Company to provide a pair of prototype high energy laser weapon systems (HELWS) to overseas troops.
The effort includes 12 months of in-field operation against unmanned aerial systems and operator training, noting Raytheon's HELWS uses pure... Read More »
Building on non-competitive grant funding already provided to various preparedness efforts throughout the United States, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced $350 million will be divided between six competitive preparedness grant programs this year.
Those funds will support... Read More »
The United States officially withdrew from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty last week, ending a 30-year ban on a class of weapons that both the United States and the then Soviet Union, now Russia, recognized as particularly dangerous and destabilizing.
These land-based... Read More »
