BACTERIAL INJECTIONS ON ARMY VETERANS

Tularemia and Q fever were injected in 2,300 army soldiers in order to understand and test vaccines against these agents. Veterans allowed themselves to be infected with these infectious agents. Therefore, allowing vaccines to be created for protects against biological warfare agents. Out of the soldiers being tested, only 20 % declined after being subjected to the toxic chemicals. Lastly, many of the participants were trained medics who volunteered themselves to be infected by Tularemia and Q fever. This was known as Operation White Coat

Operation White Coat was an experiment that took place between 1954 to 1973. It was a Biodefense medical research program carried out by the U.S Army in Fort Derick, Maryland. Volunteers for the experiment were enlisted individuals. The volunteers are called “whitecoats.”

The researchers described the purpose and goals of the research to the volunteers before they gave their consent. The purpose of the experiment was to learn ways in which to defend soldiers against biological weapons. Vaccines for hepatitis and Yellow fever came from the analysis.

 In addition, the research lead to the development of biological safety equipment, which included incubators, centrifuges, and particle sizers. Operation Whitecoat discontinued in 1973 when the draft of the U.S military ended. Specifically, there were not enough military volunteers for the project to continue.

Sources:

Larsen , Randall. At United States Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) at Ft. Detrick, Maryland, Lab Gloves from a Box Are Fitted on Hands during Testing. . 1954. Seventh-Day Adventist Church. https://www.nadadventist.org/news/filmmaker-talks-about-documentary-adventist-volunteers-armys-operation-whitecoat.

Cabrone, Larry. “Operation Whitecoat.” What Animals Want: Expertise and Advocacy in Laboratory Animal Welfare Policy. . Oxford University Press, September 29, 2016. https://worldofsecrets.org/en/2016/09/operation-whitecoat/. 

Williams, Mark S., et al. “Retrospective Analysis of Pneumonic Tularemia in Operation Whitecoat Human Subjects: Disease Progression and Tetracycline Efficacy.” Frontiers in Medicine, vol. 6, Jan. 2019, pp. 229–229, doi:10.3389/fmed.2019.00229