COUNTY OF SAN MATEO

Inter-Departmental Correspondence

Health Department

DATE:

April 12, 2006

BOARD MEETING DATE:

May 2, 2006

SPECIAL NOTICE/HEARING:

None

VOTE REQUIRED:

Majority

TO:

Honorable Board of Supervisors

FROM:

Charlene A. Silva, Director, Health Department

Dr. Scott Morrow, Health Officer

Brian J. Zamora, Director, Public Health and Environmental Protection Division

SUBJECT:

Pandemic Flu Preparedness and Response Plan

RECOMMENDATION:

Accept and approve the Health Department Pandemic Flu Preparedness and Response Plan.

VISION ALIGNMENT:

Commitment: Ensure Basic Health and Safety for All

Goal 7: Maintain and Enhance the public safety of all residents and visitors.

This Plan contributes to the goal by identifying and developing activities and actions that will mitigate the impact of a Pandemic Flu outbreak in San Mateo County.

Performance Measure(s):

Measure

FY 2005-06
Actual

FY 2006-07
Projected

Develop Countywide Plan

Complete Phase I to identify basic preparedness and response activities.

Complete Phase II to fully develop the plan and perform practice drills.

BACKGROUND:

Influenza, also known as the flu, is a viral disease that attacks the respiratory tract in humans. Seasonal influenza is a yearly occurrence that causes minor impact by attacking primarily the young and aged 65 and older. It also provides immunity to those who are exposed, but do not succumb, to the virus.

World-wide pandemics of influenza occur when a new or different virus emerges to which the population has little immunity. During the 20^th century there were three such pandemics. The most notable was the 1918 Spanish influenza, which was responsible for 20 million deaths throughout the world. Public health experts are concerned about the risk of another pandemic arising from the current epidemic of avian influenza that has been affecting domestic and wild birds in Asia and that has spread to other parts of the world. When such strains of avian influenza interact with the common strains of human influenza, a mutation can occur that leads to a virus capable of human-to-human transmission, initiating a pandemic strain of influenza.

The impact of an actual pandemic cannot be predicted at this time; it depends on the virulence of the virus, how rapidly it spreads, the availability of vaccines/antiviral agents, and the effectiveness of medical and nonmedical containment measures.

DISCUSSION:

In December 2005, the Health Department convened a group of representatives from various County departments to develop a Pandemic Flu Preparedness and Response Plan. The group met weekly and a basic plan was completed, covering subjects such as surveillance, vaccine distribution and use, institutional surge capacity, communication, and education.

Phase Two next steps will be to fully develop the plan and perform practice drills, which will include training exercises with the cities. Areas of the plan that will be expanded include: public information campaigns on how to stay healthy and how to care for people at home during a pandemic; plans to care for people who usually receive care at health facilities; working with local hospitals to develop policies and procedures for patient triage/assessment and treatment; and developing procedures for procuring and storing medical supplies. There is also concern that government, schools, and businesses will have difficulty staying operational with staffing shortages should a pandemic occur. Phase Two will also address how to provide assistance to these entities to develop systems so that they may remain operational with a reduced work force. Some of the aforementioned activities can be completed in six months, while others will take up to two years to complete.

FISCAL IMPACT:

Approximately $20,000 has been spent developing Phase One. Phase Two will cost approximately $300,000 and will take two years to complete. Phase Two will be more labor intensive with the level of community coordination that will need to take place. Seventy-five thousand dollars is included in the Recommended FY 2006-07 budget for Phase Two planning activities; the remaining $225,000 will be budgeted in FY 2007-08. The Governor’s Budget for FY 2006-07 includes a proposal of $16 million for local health departments to support flu preparedness and response. While the exact amount for San Mateo County is unknown, it is anticipated to be sufficient to cover these planning costs. However, costs for recommendations stemming from the Plan will not be known until the Plan is completed. It is also unknown if there will be any state funding for these recommendations.