[image: Rempfer, n.d. image of a service member preparing to administer the anthrax vaccine at the Troop Medical Clinic on Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, Oct. 27. (Army).]
[image: Rempfer, n.d. image of a service member preparing to administer the anthrax vaccine at the Troop Medical Clinic on Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, Oct. 27. (Army).]
ANTHRAX VACCINE ADSORBED
In 1954, the U.S. developed a vaccine known as the Anthrax Vaccine Adsorbed to protect those against a dangerous infection known as anthrax, a spore-forming organism that can make you sick and even lead to death. Exposure to anthrax was unlikely for people unless they worked in animal mills, labs that studied the organism or were in the military. In the 1990s, the U.S. military was at war with Iraq and found they had access to anthrax to use as a bioterrorism weapon, and by 1997 the military required all service members to be vaccinated out of fear for protection. Two important questions arose due to the military’s response: did the U.S. know what type of strain of anthrax Iraq held, and was our vaccine even able to protect us from said strain? Neither question was ever addressed by the military, but instead, the vaccine was mass-produced and distributed.
When a production issue occurred, it was then established that only those who would potentially come in contact with the bacteria would need it. The military decided to use the vaccine as an answer to all the possible bioterrorism attacks, without ever really knowing if it would work against any possible threat besides the few strains we have tested here in the U.S. Another issue that arose in this situation is the consent of the soldiers. When a person enlists, they are giving the government the right to inject them with any vaccine or serum at any time, without a say.
Citations
"Anthrax Attacks." Antiterrorism Historical Vignette.
"Anthrax: The Cell Infiltrator." Infectious Disease: Superbugs, Science, & Society.
B. anthracis spores [Image]. Duke University Word Press.
Offit, Paul A. "A Look at Each Vaccine: Anthrax Vaccine." Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 27 Apr. 2020.
Rempfer, Kyle. A service member prepares to administer the anthrax vaccine at the Troop Medical Clinic on Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, Oct. 27. (Army) [Image]. Army Times.
Roos, Robert. “GAO: Military anthrax shots caused many reactions, prompted some pilots to quit”. CIDRAP, 08 November 2002.
"Russian Officials Blame Thawed Reindeer Carcass in Anthrax Outbreak." CNN, 28 Jul. 2016.