Delaware Paper Probes Alleged Vaccine Experiments on Soldiers

By: Erin Olson The Dover Air Force Base in Delaware has been a center of controversy since 2003, with disputes over a policy banning images of flag-draped coffins returning there from Iraq. Now it's the focus of charges that swirl around a tainted vaccine for anthrax, and The News Journal in nearby Wilmington is working to push the episode into the national spotlight.

"It's really big, and we've spent a lot of time on it, and now the follows are going to be really interesting," David Ledford, vice president for news and executive editor at the News Journal, told E&P Wednesday.

The charges involve allegations brought by an ex-commander at the Dover base, retired Lt. Col. Felix Grieder.

As reported by Lee Williams, an investigative reporter for the News Journal, Grieder believes military officials conducted illegal medical experiments under the government's anthrax vaccination program in 1998, using his troops in Dover as guinea pigs. A number of the troops who received vaccinations have suffered debilitating side effects, including early-onset arthritis and migraine headaches.

In a controversial move, the government made anthrax vaccinations mandatory for all active-duty personnel in 1998. Shortly after, in May 1999, Dover troops in their 20s and 30s who had received vaccinations began developing illnesses, like arthritis, that usually come with old age.

After years of investigation, Grieder has concluded that the military was using his troops in Dover to secretly test the effectiveness of a substance called squalene, which was discovered in the anthrax vaccinations sent to Dover. Squalene is a fat-like substance that occurs naturally in the body and can boost a vaccine's effect, but scientists say injecting it into the body, even in small amounts, can cause serious illness.

The Pentagon, which has acknowledged secretly testing squalene on people in Thailand, says the Dover troops received a batch of the anthrax vaccine that had accidentally been contaminated with squalene. But Grieder says the presence of squalene in the vaccine was deliberate, to test its effects.

Senators Joe Biden and Tom Carper and Rep. Mike Castle of Delaware are requesting an investigation into the matter.

Ledford, the News Journal editor, was cautious in commenting on the validity of the allegations, but said if it is true, "it's outrageous." He added, "I have talked to some of these people myself, and I can tell you they're hurting, and they're facing a lot of anxiety about what their futures might hold."

The News Journal has published four stories and an editorial on the issue since Sunday and has "several others in the pipeline," according to Ledford, who told E&P the paper had received calls from CNN and CBS asking for sources. He said the News Journal will continue investigating, as well. "We have a really good story coming for Sunday," he hinted, but would not reveal the content of the article.