The Future of BioWatch Homeland Security Today (07/13) Vol. 10, No. 5, P. 22 Verton, Dan; McCarter, Mickey The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is currently conducting an analysis of alternatives to determine how to best proceed with the next stage of BioWatch, its system for detecting biological terrorist threats. The analysis, which is expected to be complete by fall 2013, looks at potential automated detection and reporting technologies to reduce the amount of time it would take the government to respond to a biological attack by about four to six hours. However, whether Congress will be willing to provide the estimated $5 billion in funding required for the next stage of the program, known as Gen-3, remains to be seen. BioWatch has been placed on an acquisitions hold until DHS can address skyrocketing costs and allegations of mismanagement. To this end, DHS has also asked the National Academies of Science to develop standards to detect biological threats, a project that is expected to be complete by late 2014. Between the analysis and the new standards, security experts say it may be more than a year before DHS has the evidence to prove whether the BioWatch program works. Another challenge for the BioWatch program as it moves forward will be the need to consult with the state and local officials who are ultimately in charge of declaring whether a legitimate BioWatch Actionable Result (BAR) has been detected by the system. If the program is allowed to advance, federal, state, and local officials will need to work together to develop guidance and plan exercises to adapt to the Gen-3 technologies.
Posted on: Thu, 08 Aug 2013 01:15:47 +0000
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