Bioport official disagrees with inoculation survey

by Tom Eldred, Senior writer

Delaware State News

June 23, 2000

LANSING, Mich. - A spokeswoman for the only laboratory in the U.S. licensed to make anthrax vaccine has serious doubts about a random government survey seeking data on the Pentagon's mandatory anthrax immunization program.

"I would be very reluctant to agree it's a random sample survey,'' said Kelly Rossman-McKinney, a spokeswoman for BioPort Inc. "I'm afraid it's in no way, shape or form a true picture.''

Ms. Rossman-McKinney was referring to a questionnaire being sent to about 1,200 air reservists by the U.S. General Accounting Office.

The GAO is the investigative arm of Congress. According to an introduction on the 65-question survey, the agency was asked by Rep. Dan Burton, R-Ind., chairman of the House Committee on Government Reform, to gather the information.

Although the inoculation program is mandated for all of the nation's 2.4 million troops, the survey is only being sent out to select members of the Air Force Reserves and the Air National Guard.

Lt. Beena Maharaj, public affairs officer for the 512th reserves at Dover Air Force Base, said she had no knowledge of any personnel at the base receiving the survey.

"We received no information on this,'' Lt. Maharaj said. "The (GAO) hasn't involved us. This is strictly their show.''

Lt. Col. Gill Nichols, chief of staff for the 166th Airlift Wing in New Castle, said the chain of command there had no notification about the survey.

"We started sending the surveys out about three weeks ago,'' said Dr. Sushil Sharma, assistant director of the National Security and International Affairs Division of the GAO.

"We have a random sampling, which means some people got it and some didn't. We've had a good response so far, but I have no information on whether people in Delaware got it.''

The survey, which guarantees individual privacy, seeks background and flying status information. It includes detailed checkoff lists for any side effects and/or reactions to anthrax vaccinations, and covers other topics, such as women's issues and quality of service.

"We would hope to have an 80 percent response before submitting our report,'' Dr. Sharma said. "Hopefully that will be fairly soon.''

Ms. Rossman-McKinney said she thinks the survey results will be flawed.

"It's all over the Internet,'' she said. "It's not a scientific selection process and it does not screen for duplicate responses. It's being pushed by the anti-vaccine people.''