Preventing bioterrorism: Rep. Strong advances bill to upgrade homeland security program

In the wake of heightened global security concerns throughout 2001, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security developed the program BioWatch, a monitoring system that tests air samples for biological agents that could be used in attacks on American citizens.  It currently operates across over 30 major U.S. cities in cooperation between DHS, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Drawing on his experience as a first responder, Rep. Dale Strong (R-Monrovia) authored a bill he says will “harden our defenses against bioterrorism.” That bi