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United States: Many Hospitals Not Prepared for Bioterror Attack, GAO Says By Joe Fiorill The report indicated most U.S. hospitals take part in basic planning and coordination but that there are important deficiencies in training and equipment. American Hospital Association Senior Associate Director for Policy Development Roslyne Schulman told Global Security Newswire that U.S. hospitals’ preparedness for bioterrorism has improved in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, but that much work lies ahead. The GAO solicited comments on the report from the association, which generally agreed with its findings. “The hospitals have made a lot of progress since Sept. 11. They’ve made a lot of important steps, but there is a great deal that needs to be done,” Schulman said. Responding to a GAO survey, most hospitals reported participation in basic planning and coordination for a biological attack; 80 percent reported having written emergency response plans that address bioterrorism; nearly all said they participate in interagency disaster planning committees; and most indicated they train personnel in identification and diagnosis of diseases, such as anthrax and botulism, caused by likely agents of biological warfare. However, the hospitals said their equipment is insufficient for responding to a large-scale attack. Half the hospitals have fewer than six ventilators per 100 beds, meaning they could find themselves seriously underequipped for a concentrated anthrax or botulism outbreak ― a finding, the GAO noted, that comes three years after the May 2000 TOPOFF terrorism exercise, in which ventilators and other equipment were found insufficient within three days of a simulated pneumonic plague outbreak. In addition, hospitals’ written response plans often lacked key contacts, the GAO said, and most hospitals have not conducted bioterrorism simulation drills. In its report, the GAO took note of new federal funding vehicles that could help improve bioterrorism preparedness in hospitals, including the Health and Human Services Department’s Bioterrorism Hospital Preparedness Program, which the department said in March will provide $500 million in fiscal 2003 to states and municipalities (see GSN, March 21). Schulman said hospitals are “appreciative” of the federal funds but that the money is “just a drop in the bucket” and “a first step.” “We’re pleased that they’re continuing that funding stream. … We do support a continued increasing investment in readiness,” Schulman said. “The funding’s been very slow to get out, and … not very much of it has yet gotten to hospitals,” she added. Schulman’s group reported to Congress after the September 2001 attacks that an estimated $11 billion would be needed to get U.S. hospitals ready for one potential bioterrorism scenario. Besides distributing funds to state and local health officials, Washington has also created a stockpile of drugs and supplies in case of a biological attack. Health and Human Services has announced plans to buy 2,700 ventilators by next month to bolster the stockpile, parts of which could be deployed within 12 to 36 hours of a declared emergency, according to the GAO. Required under public health legislation passed in 2000, the GAO report was based on part of a survey conducted between May and September of last year. Of 2,041 hospitals surveyed, 1,482 responded, a rate of 73 percent. The other part of the survey formed the basis for a GAO report issued in March on general emergency room performance. Yesterday’s report follows an April 7 GAO report indicating state and local officials around the United States display varying levels of preparedness for a bioterrorism attack, with significant deficiencies in capacity, communications and coordination (see GSN, April 8). That report included references to a lack of guidance for hospitals about preparing for a biological attack.
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