Long shot

At the turn of the 21st century, the United States contended with a state-run biological warfare program, bioterrorism, and a pandemic. Together, these threats spurred large-scale government demand for new vaccines, but few have materialized. A new anthrax vaccine has been a priority, but twenty years later and a billion dollars later, there is still no vaccine. Historically the U.S has excelled at responding to national health emergencies such as those in World War II, but with market based innovation, biotechnology, specialization and outsourcing, there is a definite decline that may have its roots in the lack of collaborative networks and research practices that drove successful vaccine projects in the past.