May 16, 2017
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Public Health & Healthcare Preparedness
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REPORT
Morbidity & Mortality Weekly Report.
Often called "the voice of CDC," the MMWR series is the agency's primary vehicle for scientific publication of timely, reliable, authoritative, accurate, objective, and useful public health information and recommendations.
(CDC, 5/12/17)
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REQUEST FOR INFORMATION
Tuberculosis Innovations and Health Systems Strengthening in the Philippines.
This Request for Information is to inform interested parties of another tuberculosis (TB) activity that is being designed to help the Philippines reduce and eliminate TB. The intent is to also seek statements from capable organizations (i.e., nongovernmental organizations, universities, consortium, for-profit) that are implementing or have implemented TB projects/programs and may be interested to partner with USAID in achieving the goals of this future TB activity.
(Grants.gov, 5/12/17)
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RESEARCH
Enterococci May Have Evolved Antimicrobial Resistance Millions of Years Ago.
Enterococci bacteria are the bane of hospitals, causing thousands of multidrug-resistant infections in patients each year. Now, researchers have traced evidence of the bacteria's evolutionary history back 425 million years and theorize that the same traits that allow the bacteria to thrive in hospitals likely emerged when they were carried onto land in the guts of the world's first terrestrial animals.
(NIAID, 5/11/17)
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NEWS
Countering Public Health Threats.
In addition to approving obiltoxaximab to neutralize Bacillus anthracis toxins, the FDA also expanded the indication for an anthrax vaccine to include postexposure prophylaxis when used with recommended antimicrobial therapy to combat disease resulting from B. anthracis contact.
(JAMA, 5/2/17)
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WEBINAR
Highly Pathogenic Infectious Disease Exercise Planning for Frontline Facilities.
The National Ebola Training and Education Center (NETEC) and ASPR's Technical Resources, Assistance Center, and Information Exchange (ASPR TRACIE) are partnering on a series of webinars. The next webinar will focus on exercise planning for Frontline Facilities - acute care hospitals and other emergency care settings, such as urgent care clinics and critical access hospitals - that have not been designated as an Ebola Treatment Center or Assessment Hospital. Frontline Facilities have the possibility of encountering a patient suspected of infection with Ebola virus or another highly pathogenic infectious disease. The webinar will take place on May 24, 2017, 2-3 PM EST. Registration is required.
(ASPR, 5/17)
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WORKSHOP
Emerging and Infectious Disease Preparedness Simulation Training.
The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have established the National Ebola Training and Education Center (NETEC) to increase the competency of healthcare and public health workers and the capability of healthcare facilities to deliver safe, efficient, and effective Ebola patient care. NETECT will be offering a course on healthcare preparedness in New York City on June 5-6, 2017. Registration is required.
(ASPR, 5/17)
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GUIDANCE
Information Sharing Topic Collection.
These resources highlight guidance and lessons learned on information sharing that can help emergency health planners identify stakeholders to incorporate into the information flow, develop rules and elements for sharing, and exchange information to ensure a common operating picture. This Topic Collection concentrates on the information shared, and not on the actual "hardware" or physical elements of the information sharing systems.
(ASPR, 5/17)
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Homeland Security & Disaster Preparedness
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NEWS
Taking Down Terrorists in Court.
Zainab Ahmad is an Assistant United States Attorney with the Eastern District of New York. Since the September 11th attacks, EDNY has become an aggressive prosecutor of terrorism, securing more convictions than any other US Attorney's office. Ahmad's specialty is counterterrorism, her subspecialty "extraterritorial" cases, which means that she spends a great deal of time overseas, negotiating with foreign officials, interviewing witnesses, often in prison, and combing the ground for evidence in terror-related crimes against Americans.
(New Yorker, 5/15/17)
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| STATEMENT
Worldwide Threat Assessment of the US Intelligence Community. In his statement to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Daniel R. Coats, Director of National Intelligence, identifies genome editing, cyber threats, and weapons of mass destruction as key threats (among others) to US national security. (US Senate Select Intelligence Committee, 5/11/17) See also: US Spy Agencies Wimp Out on Science of Climate Change, but Still Say it's a Security Threat (Science, 5/11/17) |
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Radiological & Nuclear Disaster Preparedness
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UPDATE
Hanford Site Emergency Terminated.
Most Hanford Site workers will be on a normal work schedule on Thursday, May 11. Before allowing uncontrolled access to the area where the partial tunnel collapse occurred, officials plan to take additional near-term actions to ensure the safety of the workforce and the public.
(Department of Energy, 5/10/17)
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Science & Technology Policy
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NEWS
The Real Threat to Our Government is Tech Illiteracy.
Digital illiteracy at every level of government endangers the security of the nation and the functioning of democracy. It takes a multi-pronged, concerted approach, with smart internal policies, federal legislation, tech savvy diplomats, and a willingness to realize information security is a critical skill for the defense of the nation-all of which is incredibly difficult to achieve even when a government is functioning well.
(Wired, 5/11/17)
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PRESS RELEASE
Meet Scott Gottlieb, MD, Commissioner of Food and Drugs.
Dr. Scott Gottlieb was sworn in as the 23rd Commissioner of Food and Drugs on May 11, 2017. Dr. Gottlieb is a physician, medical policy expert, and public health advocate who previously served as the FDA's Deputy Commissioner for Medical and Scientific Affairs and before that, as a senior advisor to the FDA Commissioner.
(FDA, 5/11/17)
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NEWS
CRISPR Makes it Clear: the US Needs a Biology Strategy, and Fast.
CRISPR, which allows scientists to edit precise positions on DNA using a bacterial enzyme, is already transforming cancer treatment, preventing the spread of disease, and solving global famine. Its trajectory necessarily involves government agencies and commissions, our elected officials, and the courts-and none of them are prepared for what's coming.
(Wired, 5/11/17)
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BROAD AGENCY ANNOUNCEMENT
DTRA Seeks Innovations for Indexing Pathogen Repositories Worldwide.
Recent advancements in text based natural language processing (NLP) and visual analytics offer the potential to automate the collection, perform link analysis, and summarize the presentation of data associated with biological events; thus, dramatically reducing the time required to identify and analyze new biological facilities and enabling a more rapid response for the warfighter.
(Global Biodefense, 5/8/17)
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Future of Emergency Alerting. US House Committee on Energy & Commerce, Subcommittee on Communications and Technology. 5/17/17, 10:15 AM. Rayburn 2123.
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Examining Initiatives to Advance Public Health. US House Committee on Energy & Commerce, Subcommittee on Health. 5/17/17, 10:15 AM. Rayburn 2123.
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