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Crisis Response and Bioterrorism Preparedness

This web site provides citizens with information on disaster preparedness. In the event of an emergency, the site can provide breaking news and directions for citizen response.

Lane County Bioterrorism Plan Update

The threat of bioterrorism locally is unknown and could be relatively low. Law enforcement agencies are working with the CIA and FBI to prevent attacks. But should an incident occur, the public needs to know the county, cities, federal and state agencies have tightly coordinated plans in place. After September 11, the county updated its Emergency Operations Plan to include responses to specific bio-terrorism and chemical threats. 

All emergency responders, medical and staff are trained to recognize the signs and symptoms of these hazards and how and when to report this information. Lane County public health response, working in tandem with Lane County Sheriff's Office and other law enforcement agencies, would notify the Oregon Health Department. Not only state, but also federal resources are available in the event of any local situation. In the event of any incidents, the County's Emergency Operations Center would be activated with subsequent state and federal response as needed. Part of the emergency response plan includes keeping the public informed.

Message from Lane County's Public Health Officer

Your local Public Health department is already well trained and prepared to identify unusual outbreaks of illness. Our ability to identify possible bio-terrorism is tested daily as we receive reports of possible contagious disease from physicians, laboratories and the public. Public Health Nurse-epidemiologists are trained to investigate and identify any unusual clusters quickly. We are available 24-hours for emergencies.

"The role of public health is to ensure that treatment and prevention strategies are implemented as rapidly as possible," says Grant Higginson, MD, the Oregon State Public Health Officer. "In the event of a bio-terrorist attack, it would fall to our statewide public health system to identify the agent responsible, determine who was likely to have been exposed, and advise on appropriate medical treatment. Local health department nurses are a first line of defense because they are the ones we depend on to identify and investigate any communicable disease outbreak, including bio-terrorism." 

During the last few years Lane County Public Health has worked with the state to better prepare for various emergency scenarios. State public health officials received a $1 million federal grant to expand state laboratory capacity and to improve state-local public health communications. We've worked closely with the state to make improvements at the local level, but more needs to be done, especially to improve communication between public health agencies and health care providers. 

--Sarah Hendrickson, M.D., Lane County Public Health Officer

Oregon Health Department Release

Public health officials advise physicians and public regarding anthrax

In the wake of recently reported anthrax cases, doctors have been deluged with requests for screening tests and preventive treatment, according to public health officials at the state Department of Human Services. These include requests for nasal swabs, blood serum tests and antibiotics. 

Health officials recommend that people who are concerned about respiratory or skin problems be evaluated by their health care provider, as usual. But because there are no quick screening tests for anthrax disease and because antibiotics should not be used as a routine prevention step, they caution the public and physicians not to over-react.

Many people are requesting nasal swabs and blood serum tests, according to Mel Kohn, M.D., state epidemiologist. "These tests will not tell you that you have been exposed to anthrax," Kohn cautions. "Meanwhile, running these tests will take up valuable laboratory capacity."

Even with the events of the last few weeks, anthrax disease is still extremely rare in the United States, Kohn says. "We need to make judicious use of laboratory capacity to investigate any credible threats of anthrax disease. That means making sure that labs are not overwhelmed with requests for tests that are extremely unlikely to be positive."

Hospitalized patients with symptoms consistent with anthrax should have an appropriate laboratory evaluation and local health departments notified immediately so that investigation and control efforts can be undertaken promptly.

Kohn further cautions against stockpiling antibiotics. "We need to make sure we have adequate supplies of antibiotics available. If a biological attack actually happened, we would need to have those antibiotics in the hands of someone who was truly exposed rather than sitting in someone's medicine cabinet," he said.

The use of antibiotics also carries the risk of the development of resistant bacteria. Illness and even death from antibiotic resistance occur every day in Oregon, according to Kohn. "We know that inappropriate antibiotic use is a major contributor to this problem. We must use them prudently and only when the benefits outweigh the risks," he said.