By Wyeth Ruthven, Director, Congressional & Public Relations
HIDA has long advocated for a broad definition of preparedness, one that encompasses both infectious disease, natural disasters, and the threat of terrorist attacks with weapons of mass destruction. With this in mind, HIDA has urged Congress to swiftly reauthorize the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act (PAHPA).
PAHPA is the federal law that bolsters the nation’s capacity to mobilize resources and deploy effective countermeasures for public health security and all-hazards preparedness. The law needs to be reauthorized by Congress every five years. In July 2023, both the House and the Senate gave preliminary committee approval to a five-year reauthorization to PAHPA. In the intervening months, neither legislative body has taken further action, even after the underlying law expired in September 2023. Congress must act to reauthorize PAHPA by the end of this year.
As a fundamental part of our nation’s preparedness infrastructure, PAHPA creates the framework for public-private partnerships between federal agencies and the medical supply chain. HIDA supports these kinds of partnerships to bolster supply chain resiliency and maintain an open line of communication between private corporations and the public sector during emergencies.
PAHPA is about more than pandemics. Since the declaration of COVID-19 as a global pandemic and a public health emergency in March 2020, the Department of Health and Human Services used the authority granted by PAHPA to provide support to healthcare providers in the wake of numerous natural disasters.
Hurricanes: Following the landfall of Hurricane Laura in August 2020, ASPR deployed the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS) to provide temporary emergency medical services at Lake Charles Memorial Hospital and Christus Ochsner St. Patrick Hospital in southwest Louisiana. After Hurricane Ian struck Florida in September 2022, NDMS providers treated a total of 3,802 Floridians. In one example, a team of medical professionals set up 10 tents in 36 hours to create a stand-alone medical site outside the Peace River North Port Rehabilitation Center in Sarasota County, Florida.
Wildfires: ASPR and NDMS supported healthcare providers in the wake of the Lahaina Wildfire in Hawaii (August 2023), the Calf Canyon & Hermits Peak Wildfires in New Mexico (April 2022), the Almeda Drive & Santiam Wildfires in Oregon (September 2020), and the Lightning Siege Wildfires in Northern California (August 2020).
Floods: After flash floods struck Eastern Kentucky in July 2022, a public health emergency enabled ASPR to support EMS and first responders across 13 impacted counties.
Tornadoes: A mobile field hospital was set up at Sharkey-Issaquena Community Hospital in Rolling Fork, Mississippi following the declaration of a public health emergency in response to tornadoes that struck northern Mississippi in March 2023.
HIDA urges Congress to prioritize the reauthorization of PAHPA before the year’s end. By doing so, we can fortify our public health and medical response capabilities, ensuring that both natural and man-made emergencies are met with robust and coordinated efforts.