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New report finds lack of adequate medical preparedness and response in US | 12.13.2006 | 07:01:47 | Views: 5216 | ID: December 13 '06: An annual report released by the Trust for America's Health has found that many states are "nowhere near as prepared as we should be for bioterrorism, bird flu and other health disasters," Jeff Levi, the director of the trust told USA Today. All 50 states were scored on a 10-point system based on emergency medical response and preparedness. The report gave Oklahoma the highest score while California, Iowa, Maryland and New Jersey "scored the lowest with four points out of 10," USA Today reported. Indicators for the points system included, "whether each state is capable of distributing drugs and antidotes from a national stockpile, whether there are enough hospital beds and nurses to handle a patient surge, and whether states have enough labs and scientists to test for biological threats and other outbreaks." Among other findings in the report, only about 15 states are actually able to distribute vaccines from the National Stockpile; most states would not be able to handle a patient surge during a pandemic and more than half of hospitals would use-up all available beds within two weeks; and about eleven states do not have the proper biohazard testing equipment.
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