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University of Nebraska Medical Center

Public Health Preparedness:HHS Needs a Coordinated National Approach for Diagnostic Testing for Pandemic Threats

GAO During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Department of Health and Human Services struggled to lead the nation’s testing efforts, which required close coordination with public and private stakeholders. This was one reason we added HHS’s leadership of public health emergencies to our High Risk List.

We convened a roundtable of 19 experts to discuss ways HHS could improve testing. This report outlines their nearly 100 suggestions. These included establishing:

A national testing strategy that sets clear roles and responsibilities and improves collaboration

A coordinating group for all relevant partners

Our recommendations also address these issues.

Infectious diseases with pandemic potential—such as avian influenza—pose a threat to American lives, national security, and economic interests. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) leads federal diagnostic testing efforts related to such diseases. It must work with public and private stakeholders who, among other things, administer tests and collect data.

An expert roundtable GAO convened suggested nearly 100 actions HHS should take to improve diagnostic testing development, deployment, guidance, and data collection for the future. Several actions also cut across these areas. HHS officials said they are taking some steps to improve diagnostic testing related to the actions suggested by experts. For example, to help expand the number of entities able to test during an emergency, HHS has developed guidance for non-traditional laboratories seeking approval to perform testing.

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