Hospitals Reported Improved Preparedness for Emerging Infectious Diseases After the Ebola Outbreak

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is the lead Federal agency responsible for medical support and coordination during public health emergencies. In 2014, the domestic outbreak of Ebola virus disease (Ebola) tested U.S. hospitals' ability to respond to a serious infectious disease. Very few hospitals received suspected or diagnosed cases of Ebola, but the disease's presence caused hospitals to assess and improve their preparedness for Ebola and other emerging infectious diseases (EIDs). HHS agencies took action to respond to the outbreak, including providing guidance to hospitals and revising requirements for hospital emergency preparedness. This study seeks to assess those efforts by describing the reflections of hospital administrators regarding the outbreak and the actions that hospitals have taken to improve readiness since 2014. This study builds on OIG's body of work in emergency preparedness, which includes a prior study of hospital responses to a natural disaster.