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AMA to organize Third National Congress on Health System Readiness

The Department of Health and Human Services will award a contract to the Chicago-based American Medical Association (AMA), so that it can plan and convene the Third National Congress on Health System Readiness, intended to improve the capacity of hospitals and communities across the country to prepare for public health emergencies.

The AMA will organize the Congress, which will include representatives from HHS, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization, DHS, DoD, Veterans Affairs and other federal, state and local departments, as well as private-sector, academic and healthcare organizations at the local level. The medical association also will be expected to schedule "cross-sector planning exercises," which will examine emerging issues in emergency preparedness at the community level.

In its announcement of its intended sole source award to the AMA, the office of the current HHS Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, RADM W. Craig Vanderwagen, MD, did not identify the specific dates or location for the upcoming conclave. The second annual Congress was held July 2007, in Washington, DC.

The AMA also will be expected to prepare written summaries of the proceedings and increase public awareness and education following the Congress.

The dollar value of the upcoming award to the AMA was not disclosed in the HHS announcement, posted August 9, which said the award will take the form of a firm-fixed contract that will run through September 2009.

Further information is available from , HHS contracting officer, or 202-260-8856.

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