Saturday, February 27, 2016

CIA's Brennan most concerned about cyber-attacks

In this 60 Minutes interview of the CIA Director, John Brennan, 
the headlines show that he spoke about Syria's access to chemical 
and biological weapons. However, in the text and audio version, he 
never mentions biological weapons. This could mean it was redacted 
from the original interview or they just over-reached in their headline. 
What Brennan said that should be noted, however, was that Syria has 
access to chemical weapons, but later remarked, 
"it is cyber that keeps me up at night.". cbsn.ws/213oO8T  

Thursday, February 4, 2016

 
 
 
 
For Immediate Distribution  |  February 4, 2016  |  (512) 463-1826

Governor Abbott Names Director And Appoints 31 To Task Force On Infectious Disease Preparedness And Response

AUSTIN – Governor Abbott has appointed 31 members to the Task Force on Infectious Disease Preparedness and Response and has appointed John Hellerstedt, M.D. as director. The Task Force was created to provide expert, evidence-based assessments, protocols, and recommendations related to state responses to infectious diseases, and to serve as a reliable and transparent source of information and education for Texas leadership and citizens.
 
James Bass is Executive Director of the Texas Department of Transportation.
 
Carlos Cascos is the Texas Secretary of State.
 
Ed Emmett is the Harris County Judge.
 
Brett Giroir, M.D. is a senior fellow at the Texas Medical Center Health Policy Institute.
 
Janet Glowicz, R.N. is a public health analyst for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
 
John Hellerstedt, M.D. is Commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services.
 
Peter Hotez, M.D., Ph.D. is Dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine.
 
Richard Hyde is Executive Director of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
 
Tim Irvine is Executive Director of the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs.
 
Nim Kidd is Chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management.
 
Thomas Ksiazek, D.V.M., Ph.D. is Director of High Contaminate Operations and Director of the Biosafety Level 4 Laboratory, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston.           
 
David Lakey, M.D. is Associate Vice Chancellor for Population Health at the University of Texas System.
 
Binh-Minh “Jade” Le, M.D. is an associate professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.
 
James Le Duc, Ph.D. is Director of the Galveston National Laboratory at the University of Texas Medical Branch.
 
Scott Lillibridge, M.D. is Director of Health Initiatives at the Texas A&M University System and professor of Epidemiology at the Texas A&M Health Science Center School of Public Health.
 
Tony Marquardt is a paramedic with the City of Austin / Travis County Emergency Medical Service.  
 
Muriel Marshall, D.O., DrPH is the Collin County Health Authority.      
 
Steve McCraw is Director of the Texas Department of Public Safety.
 
Michael Morath is Commissioner of Education.
 
Kristy Murray, D.V.M., Ph.D. is an associate professor of pediatrics and tropical medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital.
 
Major General John Nichols is the Texas Adjutant General.
 
Dorothy Overman, M.D. is the Comal County Health Authority.
 
Raymund Paredes, Ph.D. is Commissioner of Higher Education.
 
Gerald Parker, D.V.M. is Associate Vice President of Public Health Preparedness and Response at Texas A&M Health Science Center.       
 
David Slayton is Administrative Director of the State Office of Court Administration.
 
Kristina Stillsmoking, Ph.D. is Director of the Simulation Hospital, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School Of Medicine.
 
Victoria Sutton, Ph.D. is Director of the Center for Biodefense, Law and Public Policy at Texas Tech University School of Law.
 
William Tierney, M.D. is the inaugural Chair of the Department of Public Health at the University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School.                
 
Chris Traylor is Executive Commissioner of the Texas Health and Human Services Commission.
 
Dale Wainwright is Chair of the Texas Board of Criminal Justice.
 
Ben Zeller is the Victoria County Judge.