July 26, 2016
Public Health & Healthcare Preparedness
NEWS
San Juan Sues CDC to Stop Aerial Spraying that Might Thwart Zika. The city of San Juan has filed a lawsuit hoping to prevent federal health officials from proceeding with plans to begin aerial spraying on Puerto Rico in order prevent the spread of the Zika virus. The move comes amid heated debate over the extent to which spraying an insecticide called Naled will have a negative effect on human health and wildlife. (STAT News, 7/25/16)
 
PRESS RELEASE
USDA Begins 2016 Oral Rabies Vaccine Efforts in Eastern United States. The US Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is releasing the schedule for its 2016 distribution of oral rabies vaccine baits. APHIS conducts this program each fall in select areas in the eastern United States to prevent the further spread of raccoon rabies other regions. (APHIS, 7/25/16)
 
BLOG
Using the Law to Prepare for Global Health Emergencies. When laws are not clearly defined, responders can have a hard time figuring out what to do during a public health emergency and who has the authority to take action. When a deadly disease outbreak hits, this can have devastating consequences. Liberia knows firsthand what can happen when laws don't match the needs in the field. Their experience with the recent Ebola epidemic exposed gaps in legal authority during the response. (CDC, 7/25/16)
 
PRESS RELEASE
Vaccine Strategy Induces Antibodies that Can Target Multiple Influenza Viruses. The discovery will help guide development of a universal influenza vaccine, according to investigators at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), and the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI). (NIAID, 7/22/16)

 
BLOG
Practical Applications of FDA Regulations for the Indian Food Industry. Increasingly, US grocery stores sell foods from Asia, Latin America, and many other parts of the world. Indian exporters have recognized this marketing opportunity, and FDA information shows an increase in U.S. imports from India over the past 10 years. (FDA, 7/21/16)
 
NOTICE
General Principles for Evaluating the Human Food Safety of New Animal Drugs Used in Food-Producing Animals; Draft Guidance for Industry; Availability. This draft revised guidance describes the type of information that FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM) recommends sponsors provide to address the human food safety of new animal drugs used in food-producing animals. (Federal Register, 7/21/16)
 
PRESS RELEASE
CDC Awards $60 Million to Help States and Territories Battle Zika. The funding, distributed through CDC's Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity for Infectious Diseases Cooperative Agreement (ELC), will support activities to protect the health of the American public, especially pregnant women, including epidemiologic surveillance and investigation, improving mosquito control and monitoring, and strengthening laboratory capacity. (CDC, 7/21/16)
 
OUTBREAK
Eight Multistate Outbreaks of Human Salmonella Infections Linked to Live Poultry in Backyard Flocks. Epidemiologic, traceback, and laboratory findings have linked the eight outbreaks to contact with live poultry such as chicks and ducklings sourced from multiple hatcheries. (CDC, 7/19/16)
 
BLOG
Addressing Global Challenges through Transatlantic Cooperation. On a recent trip to Brussels, an FDA delegation met with many of our European Union (EU) regulatory counterparts and stakeholders to discuss ways to strengthen our shared commitment to product safety and public health. (FDA, 7/19/16)
 
BLOG
The Rise in Orphan Drug Designations: Meeting the Growing Demand. Developing drugs for rare diseases, once considered a rare phenomenon itself, has fast become a mainstay for many companies' drug development pipelines. This is exciting news for the 30 million Americans with rare diseases and their families. (FDA, 7/18/16)
 
STATEMENT
CDC Assisting Utah Investigation of Zika Virus Infection Apparently Not Linked to Travel. State and local public health disease control specialists, along with CDC, are investigating how the second resident became infected. The investigation includes additional interviews with and laboratory testing of family members and health care workers who may have had contact with the person who died and trapping mosquitoes and assessing the risk of local spread by mosquitoes. (CDC, 7/18/16)
 
NEWS
DoD Collaborates on Influenza Surveillance Programs in Bhutan. The United States Medical Component- Armed Forces Research Institute of Medical Sciences (USAMC-AFRIMS) has announced intentions to further collaborative influenza and other respiratory surveillance programs in Bhutan. (Global Biodefense, 7/16/16)
 
BLOG
Securing Health at Our Nation's Most Symbolic Events. The work that goes into protecting the health of those attending and working at major events is extensive, and we take many variables into consideration, such as estimated crowd size, demographics, weather conditions, the type of event, and potential man-made threats. (ASPR, 7/15/16)
 
REPORT
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate: National Biodefense Strategy Act of 2016. CBO estimates that implementing S. 2967 would require a couple of employees annually to coordinate the Council's work and to produce the reports. CBO estimates that enacting S. 2967 would cost less than $500,000 annually and about $2 million over the 2017-2021 period; any such spending would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds. (CBO, 7/11/16)
 

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS
Global Health Fellows II. USAID's Global Health Fellows II program is currently accepting applications for several fellowships and internships. (USAID, 7/16)

 

GUIDANCE
Donor Screening Recommendations to Reduce the Risk of Transmission of Zika Virus by Human Cells, Tissues, and Cellular and Tissue-Based Products. This guidance provides you, establishments that make donor eligibility (DE) determinations for donors of human cells, tissues, and cellular and tissue-based products (HCT/Ps), with recommendations for screening donors for evidence of, and risk factors for, infection with Zika virus (ZIKV). (FDA, 7/16)
 
CALL FOR APPLICATIONS
Epidemic Intelligence Service. EIS officers are selected from among highly qualified applicants drawn to public health service and interested in practicing applied epidemiology. EIS officers may be assigned to work in the areas of infectious or noninfectious diseases, chronic disease, injury prevention, environmental health, or occupational health. We are particularly interested in applicants whose coursework and experience indicate flexibility to a variety of topical areas and geographic placements in the US and who have a record of high academic achievement, teamwork, innovation, and leadership. (CDC, 7/16)
 
Homeland Security & Disaster Preparedness
NEWS
Weapons of Mass Destruction Directorate Marks 10 Years. If you can imagine a disaster involving explosives or the release of nuclear, biological, chemical, or radioactive material, there's a pretty good chance a group of subject-matter experts within the FBI has built an elaborate scenario around it and tested how well emergency responders face up to it. (FBI, 7/25/16)
 
NEWS
New Orleans Receives Promised $1.2 Billion Settlement with FEMA for Road and Pipe Work. Mayor Mitch Landrieu's office said Thursday that the money for the settlement, first announced in December, had formally been obligated, giving the city and the Sewerage & Water Board access to funds intended to pay for repairing damage to pipelines caused during Hurricane Katrina and to fix the roadways above them. (The New Orleans Advocate, 7/23/16)
 
STATEMENT
Statement By Secretary Johnson On The Security For The Republican And Democratic National Conventions. Approximately 3,000 DHS personnel, from the Secret Service, TSA, ICE Homeland Security Investigations, FEMA, the Coast Guard and other DHS components were on hand in Cleveland this week, along with approximately 1,100 other US government personnel. (Department of Homeland Security, 7/22/16)
 
NEWS
FEMA Looks to Shift More Disaster Costs to States. Ballooning spending on disasters such as hurricanes, floods and wildfires that has some members of Congress calling for FEMA to look for ways to tighten its belt, while still covering essential disaster-mitigation and recovery costs. In response, FEMA is proposing that states pay a still-undetermined amount-similar to an insurance deductible-before receiving federal disaster aid, and the states could earn credits toward the amount by better preparing for a disaster. (Wall Street Journal, 7/21/16)
 
BLOG
NNSA Labs Fight Fire with Simulation. NNSA's labs are perfectly suited to support emergency response related to fire. A long history of adapting to climate change has prepared NNSA researchers at NNSA labs for a cascade of climate related impacts: drought, wildfires, and historic flooding. (NNSA, 7/19/16)
 
INTERVIEW
Advice on Leading High-Risk Projects in Government. Jason Matheny is the director of the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity, or IARPA, which conducts scientific research and develops technologies for national intelligence. In this interview, Matheny talked about helping the intelligence community engage in better forecasting, funding high-risk, high-reward research and accepting failure as part of the process. (Washington Post, 7/14/16)
 
Radiological & Nuclear Disaster Preparedness
MEETING
NRC Staff Seeks Public Input July 27 on Strategic Plan. The current Strategic Plan covers 2014-2018 and provides a blueprint for the NRC to plan, implement and monitor the work needed to achieve its mission. It establishes strategic goals, strategies, and performance expectations, as well as providing a basis for the agency's annual budget and performance plans. (NRC, 7/22/16)
 
Science & Technology Policy
PRESS RELEASE
HHS Awards More than $36 Million for Health Center Adoption of Health Information Technology. This increase in health information technology support will impact over 1,020 participating health center organizations in all 50 states and Puerto Rico. (Department of Health & Human Services, 7/21/16)
 
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