On Thursday, January 30, in the Alumni Hall of Adelphi University, State Senator Michael Balboni spoke on the issue of bio-terrorism and its challenge to New York State government. Balboni was recently appointed chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans, Homeland Security and Military Affairs. The speech marked the first time he had an opportunity to speak out publicly on the responsibilities of his new position.

After an introduction by Adelphi President Dr. Robert Scott, Balboni recounted a discussion he recently had with Homeland Security Secretary, Thomas Ridge. Ridge emphasized that the key to the national strategy was in state and local participation and response to bio-terrorism threat. New York State's importance was described as that of first responder and the eyes and ears of the law enforcement effort on the street. Ridge also underscored the fact that the federal government cannot and will not replicate the state's resources. Balboni and Ridge agreed that the key element in planning for a bio-terrorist event is not trying to invent a new system but in supplementing and augmenting the system already in place.

In the dramatic opening of the presentation, Balboni held up and released part of the contents of an aerosol spray can for several seconds. The overflow audience of television crews, civic leaders and the public listened quietly as this common everyday sound hissed across the silent room. Balboni then announced that, had the can contained the smallpox virus, everyone in the hall would be infected within 12 days. He drew this inference from a series of federal government experiments called Dark Winter which simulated a hypothetical bio-terrorism attack in a shopping mall in mid-west America which found that two ounces of smallpox virus could infect as many as 3,000 people.

Balboni spoke on the impact of the anthrax spores, which were mailed to various political, and media figures very shortly after September 11. As a result, five people died, 17 others were infected and postal and other office buildings were shut down, all at a cost in the millions of dollars. He presented a history of biological warfare around the world. In November 1969, President Nixon officially ended the United States' offensive biological weapons program. Balboni cited an air of apathy on the part of some who feel a bio-defense system and its cost might curtail other necessary medical services. He countered that, should we wait to set up a defense and response system until the first case of smallpox occurs, it will be too late.

The immediate steps he will introduce in the state legislature include 1) the establishment of a statewide program to monitor for the presence of infectious biological agents, 2) implementing a 'medicom' system to link communications among all emergency personnel, 3) the creation of domestic M*A*S*H units to handle surges in emergency medical care, 4) legislation requiring background checks of all hospital employees, 5) the passage of New York State Weapons of Mass Destruction legislation.

In making his case for these programs, he cited the need for more active state participation and pointed out the fact that there are only about 700 federal enforcement officials compared to 70,000 found in state and local government. Other portions of his program included the stockpiling of medical supplies, the installation of a centralized Global Positioning System (GPS) on all emergency vehicles and an e-mail notification system linking all New York State doctors. Balboni highly praised the initiatives of North Shore-Long Island Jewish Hospital and their programs that include medical drilling and the establishment of quarantine wards. He called the medical complex "one of the best prepared in the nation."

He assuaged the audience, which may have been depressed by the thought of a bio-terrorism attack, by pointing out the way our nation has handled previous emergencies such as September 11 and the Y2K computer threat. He emphasized our Nation's past, when all segments of society recognized their responsibility and acted. He closed his comments with a quote from Winston Churchill who said during the dark days of World War II that "all must play a role.'

After his 40-minute presentation, Balboni opened the floor for questions. A member of Adelphi's faculty asked what the college community could do to help. Balboni said that he would consider introducing legislation requiring a Citizen Corps Curriculum, which would consist of a college level one-credit course focusing on basic training in CPR, triage and evacuation techniques. When queried about evacuation techniques on Long Island, he urged caution, consideration to remaining close to home and suggested stocking homes with such critical needs as drinking water. In closing, when asked about the defense of Long Island's shoreline, he said he would continue to monitor closely the activities of the Coast Guard, which patrols the waters around Long Island.