News Releases

The Center Awarded $1.38 Million in Emergency Preparedness Funds

The Center for Health Affairs has been awarded $1.38 million in hospital emergency preparedness funds through the Ohio Department of Health and the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR), the division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services responsible for responding to and preparing for public health emergencies for the 2013-2014 fiscal year. 

Over the course of the funding year, which runs from July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2014, The Center will disperse the ASPR emergency preparedness funds to member hospitals and healthcare facilities located in the Northeast Ohio region. Allocations are based on the number of emergency department visits hospitals receive. The Center’s hospitals will receive between $10,000 and $25,000 to help prepare their facilities for emergencies such as chemical spills, power outages, mass casualties (surge inpatient care), information system failures and terrorist events. 

Northeast Ohio is unique in that the majority of federal emergency preparedness funds received through ASPR flow out directly to member hospitals, as opposed to being retained by the state department of health. 

Communication, recovery planning, exercises and training will remain a priority throughout the year. As part of the individualized consulting provided to members, The Center for Health Affairs will work with each member hospital to prioritize the use of emergency preparedness funds in order to improve each hospital’s emergency preparedness and ultimately to ensure the safety of hospital patients, employees and the facility. This year The Center emergency preparedness team and its member hospitals will also be working with county emergency management agencies and public health departments to identify and develop integrated healthcare coalitions, which will ensure that community healthcare networks will be maintained or recover quickly in the event of a devastating event. 

If you have comments, questions or suggestions about the region’s emergency preparedness funds, please contact Beth Gatlin at beth.gatlin@chanet.org or 216.255.3665 or Andrea Bishop at andrea.bishop@chanet.org or 216.255.3662.