France steps up vaccine production

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Grassroots Information Coordination Center (GICC) : One Thread

Monday, 15 October, 2001, 07:09 GMT 08:09 UK

France steps up vaccine production

France is resuming production of smallpox vaccine amid concern over the risk of attacks using biological agents.

The French health minister, Bernard Kouchner, said that three million doses of vaccine were being produced, to add to the country's stocks.

However, Mr Kouchner ruled out systematic vaccination of the population against the potentially fatal viral disease.

The move follows several incidents in the United States of infection by the anthrax bacterium - one man has died of the disease; Washington has not ruled out a link between the cases of exposure to anthrax and last month's suicide attacks.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service

http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/europe/newsid_1599000/1599477.stm

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), October 15, 2001


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