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Illinois Ahead of the National Curve for Emergency Preparedness
Strategic
National Stockpile Plan Scores Above National Average in Ability to
Receive, Distribute and Dispense Medications
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[November 10, 2007]
SPRINGFIELD -- Gov. Rod R.
Blagojevich announced Friday that Illinois' plan to distribute
necessary medications and medical supplies in the event of an
emergency received high marks from the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention. The Illinois Strategic National Stockpile plan
scored 91 out of 100, well above the national average, during a
recent in-depth assessment by the CDC. Reviewers looked at 13
different areas, including controlling inventory of vaccines and
medical supplies, distribution, and security.
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"When an emergency strikes, it is critical that we have a solid plan
to get the necessary medical supplies to communities across the
state. This assessment tells us not only that we're well prepared,
but more so than other states around the country. Illinoisans should
feel confident that we are working hard to prepare for even the
worst of situations," Blagojevich said.
The Illinois Department of Public Health is charged with leading
the response efforts of state agencies to ensure medications and
medical supplies from the Strategic National Stockpile are provided
to hospitals and health departments during a major disease outbreak,
safeguarding the life and health of the citizens of Illinois.
The Strategic National Stockpile consists of large quantities of
medications and medical supplies to protect people if there is a
public health emergency (terrorist attack, flu outbreak, earthquake,
etc.) severe enough to cause local and state supplies to run out.
Once federal, state and local authorities agree the stockpile is
needed, medications and medical supplies will be delivered to any
state in the U.S. within 12 hours. Each state has plans to receive
and distribute medications and medical supplies to local communities
as quickly as possible.
"In 2003, Illinois became only the second state to obtain the
green, or highest rating, for its SNS plan and maintained that
rating for three years. The CDC no longer uses the color rating
system, but Illinois continues to rank above the national average
for our SNS plan and preparedness efforts," said Illinois Department
of Public Health Director Dr. Damon T. Arnold.
Under the governor's direction, much of the state's success in
developing a high-scoring SNS plan can be attributed to the emphasis
on multiagency coordination and collaboration. The Illinois
Department of Public Health handles quality-control procedures for
product allocation as well as directing the activities of other
state response agencies. For example, the Illinois Emergency
Management Agency manages the coordination of assets for the
stockpile's distribution and delivery; the Illinois State Police
handles security; the Illinois National Guard provides warehouse
manpower; the Illinois Department of Transportation is used for both
ground and air transportation services; and the Illinois Department
of Corrections assists with facility availability. Other state
agencies can be called on to help support the SNS plan at any time.
The CDC's review of the Illinois plan comments on the solid working
relationship between state agencies and the leadership of the
Department of Public Health: "This cannot be more evidenced (than)
by the fact their overall preparedness assessment score is now a 91
percent."
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Blagojevich has focused on state preparedness through various
actions and exercises including:
The Illinois Department of Public
Health annually exercises SNS dispending plans, working in
cooperation with local health departments, which assures all
residents of the county, and therefore the state, will receive
the needed medications.
Tabletop
exercises: In 2006, the Illinois Department of Public Health
conducted three tabletop exercises designed to document specific
action steps and resources needed to improve on pandemic
influenza preparedness efforts in the state. Several state
agencies, including the Illinois Department of Agriculture, the
Illinois Emergency Management Agency and the Illinois State
Board of Education, participated in the tabletop exercises,
along with local health departments, hospitals and other health
care organizations.
FLUEX 2006: To
help improve emergency planning and preparedness in Illinois, an
ambitious three-day exercise in May 2006 tested the state's
preparedness for handling a major health crisis and simultaneous
terrorist attacks. More than 50 representatives from state and
federal agencies and the American Red Cross reported to the
State Incident Response Center within the State Emergency
Operations Center in Springfield to participate in the exercise.
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Prairie Thunder
exercise: The state conducted a major five-day emergency
response exercise in the Metro East area to test the state's
ability to respond to large-scale emergencies, which included a
mass evacuation and sheltering component. The exercise brought
federal, state and local response organizations together in a
coordinated response to multiple emergency scenarios that
included intelligence gathering and response to simulated
terrorist attacks, distribution of materials from the Strategic
National Stockpile, victim search and rescue efforts, and
establishment of a field hospital for treating "victims."
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Strategic National
Stockpile presentation: In February 2007 the Illinois SNS
team presented at the Local, State and Federal Public Health
Preparedness Summit in Washington, D.C. Illinois' SNS team,
selected from more than 300 submissions from public health
officials nationwide, provided insight on the state's
coordinated preparedness efforts in a presentation entitled "The
Amazing SNS Race: Collaboration Between State Agencies to Get to
the Finish." Illinois was selected to highlight its efforts
because the state has achieved the highest ranking the past
three years for its plan to use local health departments to
dispense medications and supplies.
[Text from file received from
the
Illinois Office of
Communication and Information] |
