HHS awards grants to pilot test regional disaster health response system

The Department of Health and Human Services today awarded Hospital Preparedness Program grants to Nebraska Medicine in Omaha and Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston to conduct pilot projects to demonstrate the potential effectiveness and viability of a Regional Disaster Health Response System. They received $3 million each for projects to build a partnership for disaster health response to support clinical specialty care; align plans, policies and procedures for clinical excellence in disasters; increase state and regional medical surge capacity; improve situational awareness, such as the availability of hospital beds; and develop metrics and test the regional system’s capabilities. The regional system will build on local health care coalitions and trauma centers, creating a tiered system of disaster care.