The FDA approved the vaccine, he said, and the Army ran supplemental tests on it. Also, DoD developed a tracking system that shows who received shots, where, and what batch of vaccine was used to inoculate them. Finally, the whole process inspection by an outside expert. Service members who refuse the shots are disobeying a direct order, said Cragin, and they are putting their colleagues in jeopardy. Inhaled anthrax causes pneumonia-like symptoms one to six days after exposure.
Victims eventually drown, in essence, when their lungs fill with fluids.
The six-shot series provides full protection from the disease. The following reserve leaders received their shots during the ceremony. Gen. James E. Sherrard III, chief, Air Force Reserve. James Willis, deputy director for Reserve and Training, U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters. Other officers participated in the ceremony but had already started the inoculation process.