Programs and Initiatives

• Local Health Readiness
  • ​Coordinate with local health departments
  • Manage federal public health emergency preparedness funding
  • Prepare and plan for public health emergencies
  • Develop trainings and exercises to test readiness
• Identify Health Threats
  • Use the Electronic Surveillance System for the Early Notification of Community-based Epidemics (ESSENCE) to gather and analyze statewide illness-related information
  • Early detection of public health threats (pandemics, natural disasters, acts of terrorism)
• Health Care Readiness
  • ​Work with acute care hospitals, federally qualified health centers, Emergency Medical Services (EMS), and other health care entities
  • Provide funding for regional health care coalitions to develop plans, training, resources
    
  • Plan for a significant increase in patients during an emergency (a health system surge)
    
• Emergency Response
  • ​Coordinate health and medical activities at the State Emergency Operations Center during an event or emergency
  • Distribute medication, vaccines, or medical supplies through the Strategic National Stockpile
  • Establish Points of Dispensing to distribute medical countermeasures in coordination with state and local partners