Terror Attack or Flu Pandemic – A Nation Prepares

Los Angeles, California, June 2006. In late September, Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt told members of Congress in a classified closed-door meeting that the bird flu could conceivably kill hundreds of thousands of Americans. Within 24 hours, a $3.9 billion legislative proposal to buy and stockpile huge new quantities of vaccines and antiviral medications was designed and passed with almost no debate or discussion.

Mike Osterholm wrote in a July 2005 issue of Foreign Affairs, “If an influenza pandemic struck today, borders would close, the global economy would shut down, international vaccine supplies and health-care systems would be overwhelmed, and panic would reign. To limit the fallout, the industrialized world must create a detailed response strategy involving the public and private sectors.”

Pandemic viruses aren't the only threat facing our nation. Drug-resistant bacteria and terrorist attacks spreading anthrax, smallpox or other deadly substances are also concerns in Washington.

Dr. Paulo J. Reyes, an ER Doctor and first responder in California is the author of a book on bioterrorism, Sledgehammer. He strives to increase the awareness of this potential threat now. Reyes’ book, Sledgehammer, (ISBN #097713870-4) Published by Virtual Word Publishing, is a fiction thriller, detailing an outbreak of smallpox and its devastating and fatal effects. Based on factual information and real life hospital settings, it portrays a terrorist attack utilizing smallpox and the struggles the medical profession must endure to get government acceptance that this deadly disease is once again a clear and present danger.

Dr. Paulo J. Reyes, an ER Doctor and first responder in California is the author of a book on bioterrorism, Sledgehammer.

To learn more about the dangers of smallpox and his book go to Dr. Reyes website at http://www.pauloreyes.com. His book, Sledgehammer is also available at http://www.pauloreyes.com, Amazon, Barnes & Noble and other leading bookstores.

This release was published on openPR.