WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Representative Edward J. Markey (D-MA), a senior Democratic member of the House Homeland Security Committee, today released a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that he had requested along with House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-MS) and House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA).  The purpose of the report was to assess government preparedness to respond effectively to outbreaks of infectious diseases, such as avian influenza, and attacks using biological weapons, including anthrax.  Today’s GAO report indicates that that five years after Congress passed legislation and spent $6.1 billion dollars to increase state and local areas emergency preparedness, the Bush Administration is just beginning to develop assessment tools necessary to monitor progress and evaluate the success of the preparedness programs.

Reps. Markey and Thompson requested the GAO report in January 2006 after the nation’s ineffective response to Hurricane Katrina and President Bush’s emergency request for Congress to appropriate $7.1 billion to prepare the country for a potential pandemic flu. In 2002, Congress passed the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act to increase public health preparedness regardless of whether a response was triggered by an act of bioterrorism or an act of nature.  A central goal of the legislation was to establish a system capable of responding to both hurricanes and pandemic flu. Four years after passage of the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act, Reps. Markey and Thompson requested that GAO report on progress towards this goal, assess the system’s ability to respond to “all hazards”, determine the degree to which the Bush Administration has ensured that the program is improving preparedness and provide data on how the Bush Administration responded to gaps in the program.

GAO found that:

-     The Bush Administration still does not have standard protocols, checklists or procedures to analyze incoming reports from grant recipients.  According to today’s report, “Currently there are no standard analyses or reports that enable CDC and HRSA to compare data across recipients to measure collective progress, compare progress across recipients’ programs or provide consistent feedback to recipients.”

-     The Bush Administration only began to develop formal analysis programs to evaluate incoming performance data from grant recipients in late 2006, more than four years after passage of the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act. According to today’s report, “In mid to late 2006 both agencies [CDC and HRSA] began developing formal data analysis programs that are intended to validate recipient-reported data and assist in generating standardized reports.”

-     While the Bush Administration has required grant recipients to report on a variety of capacity-building performance measures, the measures and information required has been continually modified and changed. The Administration is just beginning to assess preparedness capabilities. 

Rep. Markey said, “As demonstrated by the Bush Administration’s failed response to Hurricane Katrina and weaknesses in the public health system exposed by the possibility of an outbreak of avian flu, it is clear that our country has a serious preparedness gap that demands immediate attention.  It is unacceptable that more than four years after passage of the Bioterrorism Act, the Bush Administration still does not have an adequate system in place to identify gaps and monitor whether the preparedness grants created under the legislation actually increase preparedness.  The time to strengthen the public health infrastructure is before a pandemic flu, anthrax attack or similar mass casualty event occurs in our country.  Today’s GAO report is a sobering wake-up call that must not be ignored.”

Chairman Thompson said, “This is an incredible indictment of the emergency preparedness programs that HHS administers.  In the event of a catastrophe, most people will flood the public health system. This report indicates that currently we have no way of knowing which hospital is up to the task.  It is critical to our security that our health systems have the tools they need to respond to any and all emergencies including bioterrorist events, natural disasters or an influenza pandemic. HHS is playing Russian Roulette with the health of the nation.  When tragedy strikes people need to be able to rely on their government.  We all deserve better."

A copy of the report can be found here: GAO - Mar 23 - Public Health Preparedness.pdf