The emergence of COVID-19 pandemic has had significant impacts on human lives as well as economic and social stability. The United States has a complicated history with biosecurity as policymaking, biodefense activities and government transparency have historically been in contention (Vogel, 2008). The September 11th terror attacks uncovered various weaknesses in the national public health infrastructure that have persisted into the current pandemic. This study explores the biodefense and public health preparedness landscape for trends in federal support and capacity building. The study investigates the applicability of public health emergency management principles to the biodefense structure. Results included identification of eight common themes of failure during the COVID-19 response; (1) accountable leadership, (2) statutory authorities and policies, (3) interagency coordination, (4) coherent data system for situational awareness, (5) strategic national stockpile and supply chain, (6) testing and surveillance, (7) health care system surge capacity and resilience, and (8) federal funds, and the role of public health emergency management in the evolving landscape of biothreats, both intentional and natural. To counter the increasing biothreats, the United States must invest in revamping the biodefense infrastructure to mimic and support public health emergency preparedness initiatives which will increase our resilience to various biothreats.
The Role of Public Health Emergency Management in Biodefense: A COVID-19 Case Study