The House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Homeland Security have rejected a Bush administration request to use $40 million from the FY 2004 budget for the Metropolitan Medical Response System (MMRS) to buy anthrax vaccines and antiviral pharmaceuticals for the National Strategic Stockpile.

The MMRS was established to help cities prepare to respond to terrorist attacks with weapons of mass destruction. The Department of Homeland Security told Congress it planned to reprogram 80% of the program’s $50 million budget to buy the medicines.

Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Mississippi), chairman of the Senate Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee said he did not approve of the reprogramming because of concerns over the proposed offset for increased funding for augmenting the anthrax and other antiviral medicines. Sen. Cochran recommended that Homeland Security resubmit a revised request and work with the committee on an appropriate offset for the additional funding. Sen. Robert Byrd (D-West Virginia), the ranking Democrat on the subcommittee concurred with the Chairman’s recommendation.

This decision means that 125 municipal areas in 43 states can continue for at least this year to maintain a high level of coordinated preparedness should terrorists strike.