CDC increases Public Health Emergency Preparedness funding
ATLANTA - The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has increased by $44.3 million the Public Health Emergency Preparedness cooperative agreements for all-hazards preparedness efforts in 2016 and 2017. The funds will go to a total of 62 jurisdictions, including U.S. states, cities and territories.
The funds are part of the fiscal year 2016 Zika supplemental funding passed by Congress on Sept. 28, 2016, and signed by the president on Sept. 29, 2016. This increase restores PHEP funds previously redirected from states and other jurisdictions in March 2016 to support CDC’s Zika response.
"These CDC funds will enable states, cities and territories to maintain and improve their routine preparedness and response efforts against a myriad of health threats,” stated Stephen Redd, director of CDC’s Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response. “We appreciate being able to make the PHEP-funded awardees whole again to continue their vital work preparing for and responding to natural disasters and disease outbreaks.”
Recipients will start receiving funding the week of Oct. 17, 2016. They can use the funds to prepare for any type of public health emergency, including Zika.
The PHEP cooperative agreement is a critical source of funding for state, local, tribal and territorial public health departments. Since 2002, the PHEP cooperative agreement has been the sole source of federal funding in support of public health emergency preparedness nationwide.
In total, public health departments receive more than $9 billion to upgrade their ability to effectively respond to a range of public health threats, including infectious diseases; natural disasters; and biological, chemical, nuclear, and radiological events. Preparedness activities funded by the PHEP cooperative agreement are intended to help state and local public health departments develop flexible, adaptable response plans.