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February 14: Hospital Preparedness Program (HPP) Recipient Webinar
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Wisdom from ASPR's Women in Science |
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In honor of International Day of Women and Girls in Science, ASPR salutes the phenomenal women in our organization who drive innovation in disaster preparedness, response, and recovery.
Read profiles of just a few of the women in ASPR who are working every day to respond during ASPR's high-consequence, no-fail operations; develop next-generation medical countermeasures; grow our domestic manufacturing capacity; and evolve ASPR's capabilities to keep up with an ever-expanding threat environment. |
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February Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) Office Hours: Updates from the SNS Office of Science |
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Register today
for the next monthly SNS Office Hours, scheduled for February 28 from 4:00 - 5:00 PM ET. This one-hour session features SNS health scientists who will provide the most recent SNS science updates and answer questions on SNS formulary topics. To ensure maximum benefit from this session, participants are strongly encouraged to submit questions in advance to sns-sltt@hhs.gov (subject: SNS Office Hours: Office of Science Updates) by Friday, February 9. For more information or for questions, please contact the SNS Office of State, Local, Tribal, Territorial (SLTT) Preparedness at that same email address. |
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Deadline Extended: Submit Abstracts for the National Healthcare Coalition Preparedness Conference (NHCPC) 2024 |
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Calling all health care coalition leaders...don't miss your chance to share the triumphs and challenges of your unique and diverse coalitions. Only ONE WEEK remaining to submit your abstract!
Presentations should align with our conference theme: Visions of Progress: Sustainable Strategies for Emergency Preparedness and Resilience. Specifically, healthcare coalition leaders who can share what's working in their community through presentations with tangible takeaways that will equip colleagues to integrate new techniques, develop best practices and increase overall effectiveness. Sessions which highlight effective solutions in rural and frontier communities are in high demand by conference attendees.
Submission Deadline: Friday, February 16, 2024.
NHCPC 2024 will feature five tracks supporting this year’s theme. Selected presentations that will empower coalitions to reach beyond the status quo to create, and implement multi-disciplinary, diverse, cross-sector partnerships, and launch increased opportunities for innovative information sharing.
Track 1: Executive Coalition Leadership
Track 2: Expanding and Sustaining Coalitions
Track 3: Emerging Threats
Track 4: Pediatrics
Track 5: Health Equity and Coalition Diversity |
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Upcoming Recipient Meetings |
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Meeting Name |
Recipient Group |
Event Details |
HPP Recipient Webinar |
HPP cooperative agreement recipients |
Wednesday, February 14
2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Registration Information |
Medical Response and Surge Exercise (MRSE) Office Hours |
HPP cooperative agreement recipients |
Thursday, February 22
12:00 - 1:00 PM ET
Registration Information | Note: ASPR will update this table in each issue of the Bulletin as additional meetings are scheduled. Recordings and transcripts from previous webinars can be accessed on the
ASPR Health Care Readiness Programs Webinars webpage. |
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Hospital Preparedness Program (HPP) Recipients |
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Medical Response and Surge Exercise (MRSE) Update and Office Hours |
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The MRSE Support Team will resume hosting monthly office hours to discuss the MRSE starting in February through June 2024. These sessions are intended to provide technical assistance and discuss any questions about MRSE planning, executing, and reporting.
As a gentle reminder, we are currently halfway through the fiscal year (FY), and FY 2023 MRSE planning should be well underway. We highly encourage recipients and sub-recipients to assist one another with planning and executing their exercise. The MRSE Support Team and Project Officers are available to assist with MRSE planning, execution, and Exercise Reporting Tool reviews.
We will be releasing a MRSE Recipient Review Guide to aid recipients in their final review of MRSE Tools before HCC submission to the Coalition Assessment Tool. The guide will be published on the MRSE web page in the coming weeks.
Please submit any questions that you may have to your Project Officer or the MRSE mailbox. You may also request a one-on-one session with the MRSE Support Team by emailing the MRSE mailbox.
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To access the MRSE Situation Manual, Evaluation Plan, Fact Sheet, and Frequently Asked Questions, please visit the MRSE web page on the ASPR website: Health Care Medical Response and Surge Exercise
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To access and submit the MRSE Exercise Planning and Evaluation Tool and the Real-World Incident Reporting and Evaluation Tool, please visit the Coalition Assessment Tool
The next MRSE Office Hours session is scheduled for Thursday, February 22 from 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM ET.
During this session, the support team will walk through the MRSE Recipient Review Guide which aids recipients in their final review of MRSE Tools before health care coalition (HCC) submission to the Coalition Assessment Tool. Attendees will also have the opportunity to ask any questions they may have about the MRSE.
Note that registration is required. After registering here, you will receive an email with a link to join the meeting and a Zoom invite to add to your calendar.
Please submit questions to the MRSE mailbox prior to the scheduled office hours session to assist the MRSE Support Team in tailoring the discussion to certain topics of interest. You may also request a one-on-one session with the MRSE Support Team by emailing the MRSE mailbox. |
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HHS/ASPR Project ECHO Clinical Readiness Rounds |
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The HHS/ASPR Project ECHO Clinical Readiness Rounds focus on sharing clinical challenges and successes in preparing for and responding to disasters from all threats. This program designed to create peer-to-peer learning networks where clinicians who have more experience treating patients in emergency situations share their challenges and successes with clinicians across the U.S. and around the world with a wide variety of experience of these situations. Topics for sessions are based on new and emergent information around emergency preparedness, as well as topics requested by participants.
Sessions occur every other Tuesday from 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET. The next session is on February 20. |
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Upcoming Trainings and Webinars |
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Host |
Event |
Event Details |
National Institute of Health (NIH) |
Workshop on Research on Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Health
The purpose of the Research on Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) Health workshop is to gather researchers, subject matter experts, and advocates for NHPI health to identify (1) critical health outcomes/topics and needs affecting NHPI communities; (2) the current gaps in knowledge and research efforts on NHPI health outcomes; and (3) future opportunities for research on promoting NHPI health to reduce health disparities. |
Tuesday, February 13 - Wednesday, February 14
Registration Information |
ASPR |
Partner Update Webinar
Join ASPR senior leadership to hear about 2024 organizational priorities and current activities to support preparedness and response capabilities for our nation’s public health and health systems. |
Tuesday, February 13
1:00 - 1:45 PM ET
Registration Information |
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) |
Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) Connects: National Incident Management System (NIMS), Guidance for Public Health Communities
Guest presenters will provide an overview of the NIMS, National Integration Center (NIC) planning guidance, and tools designed to assist state and local communities in addressing preparedness challenges. |
Wednesday, February 14
1:00 - 2:00 PM ET
Connection Information |
Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) |
Planning for the First 72 Hours
This webinar will review recently released guidance on planning protocols for the first 72 hours after a nuclear detonation. |
Tuesday, February 20
3:00 - 4:00 PM ET
Registration Information |
National Association of County
and City Health Officials (NACCHO) |
Protecting Infants from Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV): Update on New Prevention Strategies and Real-World Evidence
The webinar will provide an update on RSV prevention strategies, gain feedback to help prepare for next RSV season, and share recently published real world evidence for Nirsevimab. |
Wednesday, February 21
2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Registration Information |
NACCHO |
Using Environmental Health Data to Inform Pool Regulatory Efforts in the City of Long Beach, California
Attend this webinar to learn about the City of Long Beach’s results to date and lessons learned along the way for other health departments looking to utilize environmental health data to evaluate an intervention conducted for lower-compliance public pools and spas. |
Thursday, February 22
1:00 - 2:00 PM ET
Registration Information |
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) |
Integrating Patient-Reported Outcomes into Practice: Benefits, Challenges, and Recommendations for Action
AHRQ will host a presentation where an expert panel of speakers will share their research findings on how best to use patient-reported outcomes
(PROs) for patients with varying health conditions and how to scale and spread PRO use within health systems thereby overcoming the factors that hinder their usage. |
Tuesday, February 27
3:00 - 4:00 PM ET
Registration Information |
Association of Healthcare Emergency Preparedness Professionals |
Annual Conference
Topics include real-life case studies of hospital disaster responses, lessons learned, leadership training, approaches to building health care emergency management resiliency, strategies for health care facilities to enhance medical surge capacity, and more. |
February 27 - 28
Frisco, Texas
Registration Information |
NACCHO |
Preparedness Summit
The Summit will provide an opportunity for sectors to come together, align missions, and discover better ways to work as true partners to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow. |
March 25 - 28
Cleveland, Ohio
Registration Information |
University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (UMTB) Special Pathogens Excellence in Clinical Treatment, Readiness, and Education (SPECTRE) |
Tropical and Emerging Infectious Diseases for Clinicians and Translational Scientists
Join UTMB SPECTRE for a symposium on tropical and emerging infectious diseases for the clinician and translational investigator. The symposium will feature expert-led interactive sessions and tours of UTMB's high-containment Galveston National Lab and Biocontainment Unit. |
April 9 - 12
Galveston, Texas
Registration Information |
Cedars-Sinai Health System |
2024 Cedars-Sinai Special Pathogens Symposium
The intent of the special pathogens symposium is to provide education regarding hospital preparedness for high-consequence infectious diseases to health care professionals in Health and Human Services (HHS) Region IX frontline, assessment and treatment facilities. |
Monday, April 29
Los Angeles, California
Registration Information |
Public Health Law Practitioners |
Empowering Public Health Through Law and Policy
This event will provide professionals from state, local, tribal, and territorial jurisdictions with firsthand knowledge from fellow public health leaders, attorneys, policy professionals, and practitioners on how to positively impact their community’s health and wellbeing. |
April 30 - May 2
New Orleans, Louisiana
Registration Information | |
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ASPR Technical Resources, Assistance Center, and Information Exchange (TRACIE) Resource Spotlight: Managing Patient Surge in Rural Areas, Experiences from Gallup Indian Medical Center
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In many rural areas, patient transfer is a common practice, though often strained by various factors. For this article,
ASPR TRACIE met with Dr. Emily Bartlett, an emergency medicine physician who has worked at the Gallup Indian Medical Center in New Mexico (GIMC) since 2020 to learn more about how the center determined which patients to transport and which to treat in place as they overcame related challenges. She was joined by Brandon Wyaco, Public Information Officer from the Navajo Area Indian Health Service. |
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Readout of HHS Secretary Becerra's Meeting with Pharmacy CEOs on COVID-19 Therapeutics Commercialization |
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During the call, Secretary Becerra made it clear that no patient should be charged hundreds of dollars for Paxlovid at the pharmacy counter – stressing the importance of pharmacist education and clear communication to patients. Secretary Becerra re-iterated the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to equitable access to COVID-19 therapeutics, reminded pharmacy leaders of the pathways for access that HHS negotiated with Pfizer, and made it clear that HHS would continue to engage with pharmacist leadership as needed.
Read the full press release from HHS. |
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HHS Finalizes New Provisions to Enhance Integrated Care and Confidentiality for Patients with Substance Use Conditions |
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“Patient confidentiality is one of the bedrock principals in health care. People who are struggling with substance use disorders must have the same ability to keep their information private as anyone else. This new rule helps to ensure that happens, by strengthening confidentiality protections and improving the integration of behavioral health with other medical records,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. “The Biden-Harris Administration has made it a priority to end the stigmatization of those living with substance use disorders and give health care providers the tools they need so they can treat the whole patient while continuing to protect patient privacy. We will not rest until behavioral health is fully
integrated into health care and those struggling with behavioral health challenges get the best treatment available.”
Read the full press release from HHS. |
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New Study Highlights Importance of Bird Flu Surveillance in Live Bird Markets |
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A new CDC co-authored study
describes findings from avian influenza A(H5) virus surveillance in live bird markets (LBMs) across Vietnam over a nearly six-year period (March 2017- September 2022). The study found almost 40% of samples taken from LBMs in Vietnam were positive for influenza A viruses with the prevalence of H5 bird flu increasing in 2022. This study underscores how LBM surveillance remains a vitally important activity for situational awareness around bird flu, bird flu mitigation, and pandemic preparedness activities. Following are additional resources.
Additional CDC Resources: |
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Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Updates Hospital Guidance on Texting Patient Information |
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CMS has updated its guidance for hospitals and critical access hospitals to permit health care team members to share patient information and orders with each other through a Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)-compliant secure texting platform that complies with Medicare and Medicaid conditions of participation. CMS acknowledged that improvements in technology and encryption now allow secure texting that will transfer data into electronic health records.
Read the full guidance from CMS. |
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Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) Announces Clinical Studies of Host-Based Diagnostics (HBDs) to Demonstrate Impact in Improving Patient Care |
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BARDA has announced three new partnerships under the Division of Research Innovation and Ventures (DRIVe)’s HBD program, whose goal is to advance the development, regulatory approval, and adoption of HBDs. HBDs are a new class of medical products that measure patient biomarkers to understand their vulnerability or response to infection rather than merely the presence of an infection, which is what traditional pathogen-based infectious diagnostics are designed to do. This can provide powerful information on the severity of infection or the presence of sepsis that can help clinicians make more informed decisions and ultimately improve patient outcomes. With two BARDA-supported U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 510k clearances
in the last year, the program has already experienced some early successes.
Read the full press release from BARDA. |
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Joint Commission Standards for High Consequence Infectious Disease Preparedness |
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A recent presentation from the University of Nebraska Medical Center Global Center for Health Security discussed new Joint Commission standards that will go into effect July 1, 2024. The new standards will affect hospital processes to support preparedness for high consequence infectious diseases.
Watch the full overview video. |
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Ebola Vaccine Cut Deaths in Half During Democratic Republic of the Congo Outbreak, Study Shows |
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The VSV-EBOV vaccine has been a useful tool in battling Ebola outbreaks and is known for its high efficacy, but researchers who examined its impact on patients in Ebola treatment centers found that the vaccine also helped protect against death.
Read the full article from the University of Minnesota's Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy. |
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American Medical Association (AMA) Update Podcast: The Latest Long COVID News, Rising Flu Cases |
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In the latest episode of the AMA Update podcast, speakers discuss Long COVID in children and how the number one cause of child death in the US lacks clinical research funding.
Listen to the full podcast episode from AMA. |
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Council to Improve Foodborne Outbreak Response (CIFOR) Learning Modules Available Online |
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The CIFOR Learning Modules provide summaries of the CIFOR Guidelines
. These guidelines are a comprehensive resource for state, local, tribal, territorial, and federal agencies involved in foodborne disease investigation and control. The modules cover topics such as legal preparedness, planning and preparation, surveillance and outbreak detection, control measures, and multi-jurisdictional outbreaks. |
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Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention Grant Program Application Guidance Available |
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The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships (CP3) recently announced the 2024 Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention (TVTP) Grant Program
. This program provides funding for state, local, tribal, and territorial governments; nonprofits; and institutions of higher education with funds to establish or enhance capabilities to prevent targeted violence and terrorism.
The 2024 TVTP Application Guidance is now available on grants.gov. This publication is a forecasted announcement and not a formal call for applications
. The Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) is anticipated in March 2024. The Application Guidance will enable prospective applicants to familiarize themselves with the critical information necessary to begin seeking the necessary partnerships and preparing their applications prior to the NOFO’s anticipated release, increasing accessibility to the grant program, and supporting CP3’s commitment to equity.
DHS will host two informational webinars for prospective applicants. Both webinars will cover the same information. Register here to attend the informational sessions.
For additional information, visit the TVTP Applicant Resources page or send email inquiries to TerrorismPrevention@hq.dhs.gov.
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Additional Guidance, Tools, and Reports |
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CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Reports |
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Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, February 9
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Characteristics of Alcohol, Marijuana, and Other Drug Use Among Persons Aged 13–18 Years Being Assessed for Substance Use Disorder Treatment — United States, 2014–2022
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Selection of Antibiotics as Prophylaxis for Close Contacts of Patients with Meningococcal Disease in Areas with Ciprofloxacin Resistance — United States, 2024
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Severe Work-Related Injuries in the Oil and Gas Extraction Industry — 32 Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration Jurisdictions, United States, January 2015–July 2022
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Comparison of Administration of 8-Milligram and 4-Milligram Intranasal Naloxone by Law Enforcement During Response to Suspected Opioid Overdose — New York, March 2022–August 2023
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Notes from the Field: Rapidly Linking an Outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium Infections to Domestically Grown Cantaloupes Through Early Collaboration — United States, 2022
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QuickStats: Percentage of Children and Adolescents Aged 5–17 Years Who Had Ever Received a Diagnosis of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, by Urbanization Level and Age Group — National Health Interview Survey, United States, 2020–2022
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We Want to Hear from You!
ASPR wants to hear how your organization and/or sub-recipients are making an impact in your communities. We will use your stories to demonstrate the importance of investing in emergency preparedness and response in some of our policy and budgetary documents.
Share your organization's experience in emergency preparedness, response, or recovery by answering a few questions on our Story From the Field Submission Form.
Our team will contact you for more information, as needed, and you may see your story published on the Health Care Readiness in Action: Stories from the Field webpage. Thank you in advance for sharing! |
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Note: ASPR provides the above sources of information for the convenience of the ASPR Health Care Readiness community and is not responsible for the availability or content of the information or tools provided, nor does ASPR endorse, warrant or guarantee the products, services or information described or offered. It is the responsibility of the user to determine the usefulness and applicability of the information provided. |
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