News & Perspective

(CIDRAP News) – State and local public health departments generally maintained or improved their capabilities for testing and identifying biological agents and coordinating emergency responses in 2011, according to an annual report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on state public health preparedness.

In the wake of a newspaper investigation that questioned the value of the federal BioWatch program for detecting dangerous airborne pathogens, some public health officials familiar with the program acknowledge that it's far from perfect, but they say it's not time to scrap it.

(CIDRAP News) – Phone-based flu lines that operated during the 2009 H1N1 pandemic increased public flu knowledge, may have prevented unnecessary 911 calls and visits to health facilities, and eased access to antivirals when appropriate, a recent report found.