U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

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Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson helped launch a public-private demonstration program to bring top-of-the-line information to health professionals about the detection, diagnosis and treatment of bioterrorism threats. The first in a series of educational guides, produced by the pharmaceutical industry using information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, will highlight the three ways anthrax can be contracted - through the skin, air, and food. The guide also contains clear examples of what doctors should look for when diagnosing and treating patients.

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"This program provides a model that can be easily replicated and expanded to include information on other diseases and public health emergencies. PhRMA's efforts will supplement what we already do at the Department of Health and Human Services and can only help our nation become more fully prepared to combat bioterrorist attacks."

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The full-color guide will be delivered to doctors' offices, health care clinics, hospitals and pharmacies. For the initial launch, Bayer Corporation, GlaxoSmithKline, Eli Lilly and Company, and Pharmacia Corporation will begin distributing 20,000 reference guides in 13 U.S. cities - Albany, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, District of Columbia, Hartford, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, Philadelphia, Phoenix and Tampa. In the future, the program is intended to go nationwide.

Note: HHS audio clips, press releases, fact sheets and other press materials are available at http://www.hhs.gov/news.