The high cost of germs on the loose

The SARS virus emerged naturally in Asia and spread rapidly with severe and costly consequences. It hit hard in Toronto, where the 2003 SARS outbreak resulted in 44 deaths, more than 200 hospitalizations and over 23,000 people placed in quarantine. “Infections in laboratory settings due to improper safety procedures also contributed to the rate of illness,” says the federal government, which estimates the socioeconomic effect of the SARS outbreak was at least $1.9 billion in 2012 dollars.

Soon after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States, letters laced with anthrax began appearing in the U.S. mail in what the FBI describes as the worst biological attacks in U.S. history. Twenty-two people were exposed, five died and 42 buildings were contaminated in the attack, which had an estimated cost of more than $1 billion. A scientist who worked at a U.S. government biodefence lab was the prime suspect, but he died before charges could be filed. Canada’s proposed federal rules would require individuals with access to a prescribed list of security-sensitive human pathogens and toxins, including anthrax, to hold “appropriate security clearance.”

The field of synthetic biology has grown to the point where human pathogens and toxins, “such as a modified strain of highly virulent influenza,” can now be generated in non-laboratory settings. The proposed requirements would apply to all persons who possess or use these agents in Canada, in any type of facility, regardless of how they were generated.