'Bioshield' legislation could be headed for Senate vote

Legislation to enact President Bush's "Bioshield" plan could be headed for a Senate vote as soon as next week, with negotiators close to resolving some senators' concerns that the plan's funding mechanism is too open-ended.

The legislation, which sailed through the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, hit a snag when Senate Appropriations ranking member Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., raised a red flag about mandatory funding provisions in the legislation. But meetings throughout the recess are likely to result in a passable bill, both sides said.

The Bioshield plan calls for using government dollars to encourage the private development of various bioterrorism "countermeasures," including vaccines and tests. It also streamlines certain procurement rules and allows for the distribution of non-FDA approved drugs in some circumstances.

A Byrd spokesman declined to discuss how the bill might be changed to tailor the funding mechanism, but said the matter could be settled in days. "No one disputes the need for Bioshield," the spokesman said. "But at the same time, it contains a mandatory unlimited funding mechanism, and we need to be careful that we do not fund Bioshield at the expense of other homeland security needs."

Meanwhile, the plan is lagging on the House side, where Bioshield legislation has yet to be introduced. House members proved to be a tougher audience for the bill during several committee hearings, with both Republicans and Democrats agreeing to the basic premise, but faulting the plan for being too broad.

A spokeswoman for Energy and Commerce ranking member John Dingell, D-Mich., said problems Dingell identified with Bioshield have yet to be addressed. Dingell, like Byrd, is worried about the open-ended funding and is also concerned about relaxing government procurement rules and waiving FDA approval for certain drugs.

Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., had also warned that "hasty acquisition" of drugs would only provide a short-term fix. A Shays staffer said he is working closely with Government Reform Chairman Tom Davis, R-Va., to craft a bill.