Bioterrorism and bioethics: Challenges for industry, government and society

Abstract

The emerging threat of bioterrorism raises important challenges for the biotechnology industry. Not only do new ethical issues arise for companies seeking to take advantage of opportunities for product development; so too must industry continue to grapple with longstanding issues that arise from advances in human genetics and medical research. No longer will it be sufficient to focus bioethical attention only on whether the 'ethics' of a clinical trial is as good as the 'science' (an important justification for pharmaceutical and biotechnology research). The threat of bioterrorism requires that economic, political and ethical considerations be given increased attention.