25 September 2001U.S. Health Chief Expresses Gratitude for World Support After Attacks
(U.N. officials describe terrorism as new global disease) (530) Washington -- U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson says the people of the United States thank the world community for their warm support and condolences following the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States. Addressing top health authorities of the Americas September 24 at a week-long United Nations conference in Washington, Thompson said: "This is a critical time for the United States, and knowing that the broad community of nations is standing with us is something we will not soon forget." Thompson said the United States is especially gratified by the "support of our friends in our own hemisphere," adding: "From Canada to Chile, old friends have expressed their solidarity with us as we heal our wounds and fight the terrorists who have done such great evil." As for the health challenges facing the region, such as AIDS/HIV, safe water and sanitation, and treatment for mental illness, "we have been more successful in some areas than others," Thompson said. "Nonetheless, we can be proud that collaboration and mutual cooperation have become central" to addressing those issues. Other Bush Administration officials at the conference, sponsored by the U.N.'s World Health Organization (WHO) and its regional body, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), were from the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development. PAHO Director George Alleyne told the conference that the "Pan American spirit means that we stand together in good times and bad with the United States." Terrorism, he said, "is a new disease, the treatment for which is eternal vigilance, a disease for which no vaccine or drug exists except the confidence and the good will of men and women." The fact that 37 of the 38 member countries of PAHO were at the conference, he said, reflected their solidarity with PAHO and the United States. Grenada's Health Minister Clarice Modeste-Curwen, who presided at an opening session of the September 24-28 conference, said the September 11 terrorist attacks "took the lives of more than 6,000 people instantly, something no other disease has been able to do." Gro Harlem Brundtland, WHO's director-general, said countries need to strengthen their capacity to respond to a potential use of biological or chemical agents as weapons. "We must prepare for the possibility that people are deliberately harmed with biological or chemical agents," Brundtland said, adding that any deliberate use of agents such as anthrax or smallpox should be contained by an effective public health response. Proper surveillance and a quick coordinated response are both vital, she said. Brundtland said WHO is ready to assist countries if they should experience terrorist attacks. "During the last week we have upgraded our procedures for helping countries respond to suspected incidents of deliberate infection," she explained. Guidelines for containing the resulting disease outbreaks -- whether caused by anthrax or other noxious chemicals -- are available to the medical profession through her organization, she said. (The Washington File is a product of the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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