HEALTHCARE »» EMERGENCY SERVICES »» PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE »» Jan 15, 2024

Since 1798, the Public Health Service (PHS) has been responsible for promoting the protection and advancement of our population’s physical and mental well-being. PHS agencies coordinate and implement national health policy on the state and local level, conduct medical research, and ensure the safety of drugs, food and cosmetics. Its agencies include the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Institutes of Health. As much as 70% of some state’s public health services are funded by PHS grants, including those for emergency preparedness, immunizations, laboratory services, epidemiology, disease surveillance and health promotion. However, due to the 2008 Recession and state and federal budget cuts, we’ve lost at least 50,000 public health employees in the last several years. These cuts have also produced tens of billions of dollars in annual shortfalls of critical public health services including local vaccination programs, health department infrastructure maintenance, chronic disease programs, research projects and testing for outbreaks of food-borne illness. We can now add pandemic preparedness to this long list of shortsightedness. Some claim the COVIDD-19 debacle was partly a result of poor personnel training and unpracticed hospital procedures due, in part, to PHS budget cuts. Advocates also say robust funding of medical research, much of which is performed by the National Institutes of Health, can save many lives. However, Congress views this research as a discretionary expense, the funding of which is often sporadic and at the mercy of Congressional budget battles. Proposed Legislation: Reintroduction of H.R.3055 - Public Health Service Ready Reserve Improvement Act of 2021 Prospective Sponsor: Rep. Elaine Luria (VA) I oppose reforming current public health service policy and wish to donate resources to the campaign committee of Speaker Mike Johnson (LA). I support entitling members of the Ready Reserve Corps of the Public Health Service to certain rights and benefits concerning leave and pay that are provided to members of the Army Reserve and the National Guard who are employed by the federal government or the government of the District of Columbia. The Ready Reserve Corps provides trained personnel to respond to health emergencies and improve access to health services. And wish to donate resources to the campaign committee of Rep. Elaine Luria (VA) and/or to an advocate group currently working with this issue.

Winning Option »» No issues were voted

I support entitling members of the Ready Reserve Corps of the Public Health Service to certain rights and benefits concerning leave and pay that are provided to members of the Army Reserve and the National Guard who are employed by the federal government or the government of the District of Columbia. The Ready Reserve Corps provides trained personnel to respond to health emergencies and improve access to health services. And wish to donate resources to the campaign committee of Rep. Elaine Luria (VA) and/or to an advocate group currently working with this issue.

Trustee Candidates

Representative If elected as a trustee, the campaign committee of Rep. Elaine Luria (VA) will be unconditionally awarded the funds pledged to this issue along with a letter requesting her to favorably consider either reintroducing H.R.3055 - Public Health Service Ready Reserve Improvement Act of 2021, or a similar version thereof. National Center for Disaster Preparedness If elected as a trustee, National Center for Disaster Preparedness will be awarded the funds pledged to this issue along with a letter requesting these funds be used to advocate for increasing the budget of Public Health Service agencies and its programs. Mission: The National Center for Disaster Preparedness works to research and analyze the nation’s capacity to prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters. NCDP focuses on the readiness of governmental and non-governmental systems; the complexities of population recovery; the power of community engagement; and the risks of human vulnerability. NCDP’s approach combines research, policy work, education, and high level advocacy to ensure that best practices become part of our national disaster preparedness and recovery work.

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