Center for Health Security releases summary of stakeholder recommendations on forthcoming US Global Health Security Strategy

August 29, 2018 – Investments in global health security programs at the federal level directly benefit US national security and the economy by helping to prevent the cross-border spread of infectious disease outbreaks in other countries.

That was the overarching theme of a daylong discussion among more than 70 experts convened by the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security on July 30, 2018, in Washington, DC, to gather stakeholder input on the forthcoming US Global Health Security Strategy. Drafted by the Trump Administration and due to Congress this fall, the strategy will guide continued US government work to build outbreak detection and response capabilities in nations all over the world.

Meeting participants indicated the US strategy should:

• Include a definition of global health security that is flexible, but retains a focus on health security;
• Call for meaningful integration of the nongovernmental sector into global health security efforts;
• Recognize that continued US investment is necessary to sustain global health security and to promote US interests;
• Establish clear targets by which to measure progress; and
• Address gaps in existing global health security efforts.

A summary report written by the Center provides detailed descriptions of each of these major recommendations. This report will be shared with US government agencies and departments that oversee global health security programs.

The Center has long been an advocate of effective global health security policy. In a November 2017 JAMA article, Center authors outlined why the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA)—a formal, international initiative launched in 2014 to keep the world safe from infectious disease threats—needed additional US funding to ensure its long-term sustainability beyond the approaching expiration of an initial $1 billion US investment. An omnibus spending bill passed by Congress earlier this year included 3 years of “bridge” funding for GHSA work at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; the bill also directed the White House to create a Global Health Security Strategy.

About the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security:
The Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security works to protect people from epidemics and disasters and build resilient communities through innovative scholarship, engagement, and research that strengthens the organizations, systems, policies, and programs essential to preventing and responding to public health crises. The Center is part of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and is located in Baltimore, MD.