In our recent history, national catastrophic events such as the 9/11 attacks, anthrax letters, Hurricane Katrina, and the threat of pandemic influenza led to an entirely new era in public health emergency preparedness. Policy makers from across the nation saw the need to further integrate public health into the emergency management, first responder, and health [...]
In 1999 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) established the Laboratory Response Network (LRN). The LRN’s purpose is to run a network of labs that can respond to biological and chemical threats, and other public health emergencies. The LRN has grown since its inception. It now includes state and local public health, veterinary, [...]
Every year a group called the Trust for America’s Health puts out a ‘Report Card” regarding what they believe is an assessment of each state’s readiness for a public health emergency. They use various measurements that they can find and grade each state against each other. The implication is that states that do poorly won’t [...]
