Word: smallpox
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Last fall, anthrax occupied most of our bioterror nightmares. This year, our anxiety has refocused on an even more frightening biological threat, one that researchers once believed had been eliminated from the planet: Smallpox. Friday afternoon, President Bush announced that for the first time in 20 years, the U.S. will begin vaccinating members of the military and "first responders," including firefighters and emergency medical workers. What is smallpox, how dangerous is it - and should we all be vaccinated...
...What is smallpox...
...Smallpox is a serious, highly contagious infectious disease. There are two forms of smallpox: variola major, which is the most severe and common form, manifests as a widespread, distinctive rash and high fever; and variola minor, which is far less common and also less dangerous. Variola major generally kills about 30 percent of its victims. The virus can be spread by bodily contact or by coughing...
...Didn't we get rid of smallpox years...
...knows whether or not the enemy has their hands on a Stinger missile and can get it delivered into this country," James Gilmore, a former governor of Virginia, told the committee. "But it's a lot easier to do that, and a lot more available than, for example, a smallpox attack, which would be more difficult to get, and to deliver, into this country...