Members of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee approved a bill Tuesday that would give incentives to vaccine and drug manufacturers to develop treatments for biological, chemical or radiological attacks.

The committee moved the bill after weeks of negotiations that members said were meant to form a consensus between Republicans and Democrats.

Several perennial sticking points between the parties -- including the scope of lawsuit protections for drug makers and the length of proposed patent extensions -- are still unresolved. The bill's sponsors said they hope to work out those issues in further negotiations before the measure reaches the Senate floor.

"We want there to be a consensus in this committee and hopefully a consensus in the Senate," Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., the bill's sponsor, told United Press International.

The bill sets up a new federal agency to coordinate government-sponsored and drug-company research into new vaccines and drugs for use against security threats. The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Agency would function much like an existing Pentagon office that conducts high-tech weapons research.

The new agency enjoys wide support between Republicans and Democrats, but other key provisions still do not.

Lawmakers are split over how much immunity from lawsuits should be extended to companies that either make new countermeasure products or use existing products for new anti-terrorism indications. Tuesday's bill contains near blanket protections for manufacturers and first responders who administer countermeasures, meaning patients injured by the products could not sue for damages.

The bill also gives the government authority to establish a fund to compensate health workers and others who may be injured by mandatory vaccinations but who are prevented from suing if injured.

Democrats complained that the bill fixes no dollar amounts for such compensation and leaves its creation up to the administration.

"The rules should not be stacked against patients," said Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., the committee's ranking minority member.

Democrats also expressed frustration with a measure in the bill giving up to 10 years of additional patent protections for drugs used for counter-terror purposes. The provision applies both to new drugs and to new indications for existing drugs.

Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., complained that the extended exclusivity could keep prices high for many drugs already on the market by staving off generic competition.

"There are lots of potential stumbling blocks" in the way of bipartisan agreement on the bill, Clinton said.

Committee Chairman Sen. Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., said lawmakers would continue negotiating until Thursday, after which a modified version of the bill would likely move to the Senate floor.

The Senate could vote on the measure in about two weeks, Burr said.

Todd Zwillich covers healthcare policy for UPI.

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