{"id":47677,"date":"2004-02-03T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2004-02-03T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2004\/02\/03\/gov-johanns-highlights-plan-for-bioterrorism-preparednessfacility\/"},"modified":"2022-08-29T10:42:32","modified_gmt":"2022-08-29T15:42:32","slug":"gov-johanns-highlights-plan-for-bioterrorism-preparednessfacility","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2004\/02\/03\/gov-johanns-highlights-plan-for-bioterrorism-preparednessfacility\/","title":{"rendered":"Gov. Johanns Highlights Plan for Bioterrorism Preparedness\n\nFacility"},"content":{"rendered":"

(Lincoln, NE) Gov. Mike Johanns announced a plan today, Tuesday, February<\/p>\n

3, to advance Nebraskas efforts in bioterrorism preparedness.  The<\/p>\n

goal of the plan is to combine private and public funding to construct<\/p>\n

a bioterrorism preparedness facility at the University of Nebraska Medical<\/p>\n

Center (UNMC).<\/p>\n

Under the plan, UNMC would receive a total of $6 million over the next<\/p>\n

three years from federal homeland security funding designated for Nebraska.<\/p>\n

In addition, the Governor is recommending that UNMC receive a total of<\/p>\n

$6 million over the next three years from the Health Care Cash Fund. That<\/p>\n

$12 million would be contingent upon the university receiving $30 million<\/p>\n

in private funding.<\/p>\n

This initiative is an opportunity for the state to leverage its resources<\/p>\n

with those of the private sector to advance our prominent position in the<\/p>\n

national bioterrorism preparedness effort, Gov. Johanns said. The University<\/p>\n

of Nebraska, and UNMC specifically, has demonstrated tremendous passion<\/p>\n

and commitment toward being a national leader in bioterrorism preparedness.<\/p>\n

The partnership between the state and university in this area is very unique,<\/p>\n

and this facility would give us the necessary capabilities to expand that<\/p>\n

partnership to the federal level.<\/p>\n

The $30 million in private funding would also assist in constructing<\/p>\n

the Research Center for Excellence II, a sister building to the Durham<\/p>\n

Research Center at UNMC. The RCE II would be an 11-level, 227,000-gross-square-foot<\/p>\n

facility that would house 77 research laboratories. More than 30 percent<\/p>\n

of the laboratory space would comprise the Nebraska Bioterrorism Preparedness<\/p>\n

Laboratories (NBPL).<\/p>\n

The Governors Office has led a concerted effort to put Nebraska at<\/p>\n

the forefront of many areas of bioterrorism preparedness, and were excited<\/p>\n

that our expertise is a major component of that effort, University of<\/p>\n

Nebraska President L. Dennis Smith, Ph.D., said. Were very appreciative<\/p>\n

that the Governor has included the University of Nebraska in the Homeland<\/p>\n

Security Policy Group, and were glad to help the state maintain its leadership<\/p>\n

position in this area.<\/p>\n

UNMC Chancellor Harold M. Maurer, M.D., said, Undoubtedly, this facility<\/p>\n

would elevate our bioterrorism preparedness efforts to the next level.<\/p>\n

With this building, we would better be able to address an urgent national<\/p>\n

need and better protect the safety of Nebraskans.<\/p>\n

Nebraska Lt. Gov. Dave Heineman, who directs Nebraskas Homeland Security<\/p>\n

efforts, said the new facility is necessary if Nebraska is to continue<\/p>\n

as a national leader in bioterrorism preparedness.<\/p>\n

Gov. Johanns has led a two-year effort to call attention to the capabilities<\/p>\n

within the state of Nebraska, including novel programs by the Health and<\/p>\n

Human Services System, the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency and all<\/p>\n

of the members of the Homeland Security Policy Group, Lt. Gov. Heineman<\/p>\n

said. The universitys capabilities, in partnership with the state, are<\/p>\n

among the best in the nation, and federal officials are recognizing our<\/p>\n

expertise.<\/p>\n

The partnership between UNMC and the state in this area can be traced<\/p>\n

to the mid-1990s, when UNMC became the first academic medical center in<\/p>\n

the nation to totally integrate a states medical tests with its hospital<\/p>\n

laboratory. The NPHL has been a national leader in many projects, including<\/p>\n

developing connections with small rural hospitals and laboratories as well<\/p>\n

as improving diagnostic capabilities for biological and chemical agents<\/p>\n

that could threaten the well-being of Nebraskas citizens. In the past<\/p>\n

year, the NPHL was selected as one of 23 U.S. labs to perform testing for<\/p>\n

smallpox during the national vaccination program.<\/p>\n

Steven Hinrichs, M.D., a UNMC professor and NPHL director, said the<\/p>\n

new facility would strengthen the universitys position in competing for<\/p>\n

national grants and federal programs that are emphasizing national security<\/p>\n

and preventive strategies for select agents, or those infectious diseases<\/p>\n

that are thought to have use as weapons of mass destruction.<\/p>\n

This will allow us to consolidate our biosecurity efforts and rapidly<\/p>\n

expand our capabilities in a number of key areas, including infectious<\/p>\n

disease research, diagnostic testing, bioinformatics and specialized services,<\/p>\n

said Dr. Hinrichs, who also directs the NU Center for Biosecurity.<\/p>\n

A new bioinformatics program, which would be housed in the new facility,<\/p>\n

would enhance diagnostic capabilities, Dr. Hinrichs said. That program<\/p>\n

would include new software programs that would rapidly analyze biologic<\/p>\n

select agents and determine important characteristics, such as antibiotic<\/p>\n

resistance. The center also would house the proposed National Biosecurity<\/p>\n

Center for Rural Health (NBCRH).<\/p>\n

Richard Raymond, M.D., chief medical officer for the state of Nebraska,<\/p>\n

said that although West Nile Virus is not a select agent, the increased<\/p>\n

capacity established from previous bioterrorism preparedness funds allowed<\/p>\n

for the rapid expansion of testing capability during the West Nile outbreak<\/p>\n

in Nebraska this past year.<\/p>\n

It is expected that having modern, up-to-date facilities would contribute<\/p>\n

significantly to the laboratorys ability to respond to future emerging<\/p>\n

infectious diseases, Dr. Raymond said.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(Lincoln, NE) Gov. Mike Johanns announced a plan today, Tuesday, February 3, to advance Nebraskas efforts in bioterrorism preparedness.  The goal of the plan is to combine private and public funding to construct a bioterrorism preparedness facility at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC). Under the plan, UNMC would receive a total of $6 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":79,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-47677","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","department-press-release"],"yoast_head":"\nGov. Johanns Highlights Plan for Bioterrorism Preparedness Facility<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"(Lincoln, NE) Gov. 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