Flu outbreak reveals public health shortcomings
Majority Leader urges Governor to improve communication, flexibility to prioritize resources

SACRAMENTO – Senate Majority Leader Dean Florez (D-Shafter) today addressed shortcomings in the state’s emergency response plan that were revealed by last week’s hearing on the H1N1 virus, calling on Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger for improved communication between the Administration and public health officials, as well as a more flexible system for distributing resources in an emergency.

Florez also asked Schwarzenegger why a system for ‘predictive modeling’ to stay ahead of the spread of disease – which Florez described as “fundamental for planning” -- has been in the works for a decade and is only now getting off the ground.

In a letter today to Schwarzenegger, Florez expressed his concern with expert testimony indicating hospitals, community clinics and public health officers had limited and inconsistent communication with the state while preparing to respond to the threat of an H1N1 outbreak in California.

Of even greater concern to Florez, who chairs the Senate Select Committee on Emergency and Disaster Preparedness, was the realization that our public health system has very limited ability to surge in the event of a crisis.  Rigid ‘per capita’ formulas for distributing resources also keep health officials from prioritizing their response based on the facts in hand.

Florez urged the Governor to use the experience of H1N1 to correct those shortcomings and prepare the state for a more widespread future outbreak, saying, “This lack of flexibility to respond in real time to the realities of a public health crisis is troubling at best, and irresponsible at worst.

While experts are relieved the spread of H1N1 appears to be slowing, with no mutations yet detected, they see value in the lessons learned toward preparing for future outbreaks.  Among those they cite the need for coordination among agencies, a message Florez hopes is not lost on the Governor: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30567871/

Attached you will find today’s letter from Florez to Schwarzenegger.

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For Immediate Release                                      Jennifer Hanson
May 5, 2009                                                      916-651-4016