Pope resumes anthrax vaccine, mandatory for Airmen deploying Published March 15, 2007 By Staff Sgt. Cassandra Locke Editor POPE AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. -- The Department of Defense announced the resumption of the mandatory Anthrax Vaccine Immunization Program for military personnel, emergency-essential DoD civilians and contractors, based on defined geographic areas or roles. According to Capt. Rosalind Ross-Perry, Pope Public Health, for the most part, mandatory vaccinations are limited to military units designated for homeland bioterrorism defense and to U.S. forces assigned to the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility and Korea. The captain said those deploying in Air Expeditionary Force cycle 7/8 can expect to get their anthrax shots prior to leaving. "It's mandatory for all Airmen deploying to get the shot as of March 16," said Captain Ross-Perry. She said not to expect the medical group to provide shots to the entire base. She added that Pope's enablers currently deployed will get the shot in the area of responsibility. The under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness issued implementation instructions to all military services for resuming the mandatory vaccination program by March 16. "The anthrax vaccine will protect our troops from another threat -- a disease that will kill, caused by a bacterium that already has been used as a weapon in America, and that terrorists openly discuss," said Dr. William Winkenwerder Jr., assistant secretary of defense for health affairs. The policy also allows personnel previously immunized against anthrax, who are no longer deployed to higher threat areas, to receive follow-up vaccine doses and booster shots on a voluntary basis. Under the voluntary vaccination policy, implemented during the period of a court injunction throughout 2005, the voluntary acceptance rate was about 50 percent. "This rate of vaccination not only put the servicemembers at risk, but also jeopardized unit effectiveness and degraded medical readiness. The threat environment and the unpredictable nature of terrorism make it necessary to include biological warfare defense as part of our force protection measures," Dr. Winkenwerder said. Anthrax is a deadly infection, and the anthrax vaccine is an important force protection measure to combat it. In the fall of 2001, 22 cases of anthrax resulted from attacks with anthrax spores through the U.S. postal system. Five people died in these attacks. The Food and Drug Administration has repeatedly found, and independent medical experts have confirmed, that anthrax vaccine is safe and effective. For more information on the anthrax vaccination program visit http://www.vaccines.mil/ or http://www.vaccines.mil/anthrax or contact Pope's Public Health office at 394-1471.