Import safety not getting preferential budget

A new import safety program "will not happen for nothing. This will require new resources," HHS Secretary Michael Leavitt says Nov. 14. A price tag has not been put on the effort, but in fiscal 2009 and later budgets, "we'll need to include those resources necessary to implement this," he tells White House press. But rather than specifying a dollar amount that will be available, the administration will allow the 12 agencies involved in import safety to determine the numbers as part of the normal budget process. "These resources will have to compete with other needs"...