Current Pandemic Threats and Urgent Response Planning

WASHINGTON, Feb. 15, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Crown Agents USA and Texas A&M's Bush School of Government and Public Service (TAMU) today convened a multi-sectoral array of leaders to identify and discuss strategies for responding to evolving pandemic health threats. Current and former leaders from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID), Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) joined partners from the private and NGO sectors to discuss pandemic response strategies for 2017 and beyond.

"Pandemic disease is increasingly a national security threat and effective pandemic disease response planning is a critical requirement for developed and developing nations alike.  Our experience fighting Ebola in Sierra Leone shows that multi-sectoral partnership is a key ingredient for pandemic disease fighting success," said Crown Agents CEO Lawrence Michel. "Thanks to the diverse group of leaders who participated today, the strategies we discussed reflect the best possible thought leadership on this issue."

Pandemic health threats are a national security risk for the United States and countries around the world, as the National Intelligence Council noted in their January 2017 Global Trends Report. Ebola, Zika, and Avian Influenza, and emerging infectious disease remain a global public health threat and can arrive in the U.S. within hours.

"With global pandemic threats, it's a question of 'when', not 'if'," said Andrew Natsios, former USAID Administrator and current Director of the Scowcroft Institute at Texas A&M. "The best way to prevent a pandemic in the U.S. is to stop it overseas, so the strategies shared today speak directly to America's national security interests."

Today's conference builds on momentum generated by TAMU's 2^nd Annual Global Pandemic Policy Summit held in College Station, Texas in October 2016 and will connect to the 3^rd Annual Summit being held in October, 2017 as well.  The 2016 conference, led by TAMU's Global Pandemic Policy Program, identified a number of strategic recommendations for pandemic response, including deepening the data link between animal and human health, improving cultural competency to drive effective in-country response, and increasing collaboration between government, private sector, and academia. In the months ahead, Crown Agents USA, TAMU and their strategic partners will continue to build a unified international pandemic disease planning strategy.

"Government, industry, and civil society have specific responsibilities in a pandemic, but we share a common human interest in effective pandemic response and planning," said Dr. Gerald Parker, Senior Fellow at TAMU's Bush School of Government and Public Service. "At the end of the day, that's why this conference matters and why it's so encouraging that so many leaders chose to participate."

Contact-Crown Agents USA:  Mr. Brendon Miller
Phone: 202-230-6413 Email: [email protected]

Contact-Texas A&M:   Dr. Gerald Parker
Phone:  979-436-0670: Email: [email protected] 

SOURCE Crown Agents USA