Outbreaks: Protecting Americans From Infectious Disease

Item Details

Title

Outbreaks: Protecting Americans From Infectious Disease

Topics

This report examines infectious disease preparedness across 10 indicators in each state of the US, in the context of Ebola and preparing for MERS-CoV and other emerging infectious diseases.

Date

2015

Conclusions

The Ebola outbreak demonstrated how lapses in sustained support for preparedness funding can leave communities vulnerable to emerging infectious diseases. The overuse of antibiotics, underuse of vaccines, and underfunding of public health have resulted in major gaps in the country's ability to detect, diagnose, treat, and contain the spread of infectious diseases. Key emerging threats with emergency potential include pandemic flu, Chikungunya, Dengue Fever, Chagas Disease, West Nile virus, Malaria, and Valley fever.

Source

Levi, J., et al. Outbreaks: Protecting Americans from Infectious Diseases. Trust for America's Health. December, 2015. https://www.tfah.org/reports/. Accessed March, 2024.

Citation

“Outbreaks: Protecting Americans From Infectious Disease,” Collection of Biothreat Risk Assessments (COBRA), accessed January 15, 2025, https://cobrabiosecurity.org/items/show/509.