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Refer to article on 11-12  "SMALL POX - Waging Ultimate Bio-Warfare"

Wednesday November 28 3:49 PM ET

Bush Admin. to Buy Smallpox Vaccine

By LAURA MECKLER, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Bush administration has signed a contract to buy more than 150 million doses of smallpox vaccine, an official familiar with the negotiations said Wednesday.

The contract will bring the nation's stockpile to nearly 290 million doses, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The government already has 15.4 million doses on hand, each of which will be diluted to create five doses, bringing the on-hand total to 77 million. An additional 54 million doses have already been ordered and are expected to be delivered next year.

The new contract will purchase just over 150 million more doses, the official said. He declined to say which of three companies in the bidding won the contract. The total cost will be less than the $509 million that the administration has asked Congress to provide. That would put each dose at less than $4.

Federal researchers have concluded that the smallpox vaccine now on hand can be effective if each dose is divided into five.

Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson planned to announce the new contract after the stock market closed Wednesday.

In the running were Merck & Co., GlaxoSmithKline and a joint venture between British-based Acambis and Baxter International.

The U.S. arm of Acambis is making the 54 million doses now under HHS contract.

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