Eric Hargan, acting HHS secretary, declared a public health emergency in California Oct. 15, as wildfires burn down more than 200,000 acres across 10 counties.
The declaration, which is effective retroactively to Oct. 8, allowed Mr. Hargan to issue a waiver for the state, which enables CMS to take action and give beneficiaries and their healthcare providers greater flexibility to meet critical health needs.
HHS also deployed four regional emergency coordinators to the area to help coordinate state and local emergency response officials. Two regional incident support team pharmacists are in the region in the event the state requests Federal Emergency Management Agency's ambulance contract to be activated. Staff from HHS' National Disaster Medical System and U.S. Public Health Service also stand ready.
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