The American Hospital Association is asking Congress to consider doubling the $385 million in five-year funding it has proposed for the Hospital Preparedness Program.
The Hospital Preparedness Program is a national effort established 20 years ago and led by the HHS's Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response — designed to provide funding and support to states and metro areas in developing response plans in the event of large scale disasters like COVID-19.
After such a disaster that strained hospitals and health systems nationwide just a few years prior, the AHA says doubling funding for this initiative will "help prepare and equip our nationwide health care system in advance of the growing number and scope of future disasters and public health emergencies," the organization wrote in a July 10 letter.
The association said funding for the nationwide program has decreased since its inception. In 2003, it notes that funding was at a high of a high of $520 million.
"Additional and sustained funding will be necessary to not only restore HPP to its original capacity, but also to strengthen the program to address increasing threats to public health," AHA leaders wrote.
The association is also urging Congress to allow the funding for the program to cross state lines "to strengthen health care emergency preparedness and response planning across multi-state regions."