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U.S. lawmakers on Sunday tentatively agreed to earmark $3.78 billion to prepare for a possible avian flu epidemic, about half what the Senate and White House had wanted for stockpiling anti-viral drugs and vaccines and helping communities plan for a health crisis.

The Senate had wanted $8 billion, and President Bush last month requested $7 billion but faced resistance from fiscal conservatives.

The bill does not include a provision sought by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a Tennessee Republican, that would protect vaccine, drug and medical device makers against lawsuits in a public health or bioterror emergency.

But Frist aides said the bill’s text was not finalized and would not rule out including a liability measure very late Sunday night or early Monday. The bird flu funds were included in a defense spending bill, and the fate of that bill was uncertain in the Senate.

Source: Reuters