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Press Release: Virginia Again Rated as One of the States Best Prepared for Public Health Emergencies

Press release from the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association….

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a real-world stress test of the readiness of Virginia governmental, health care delivery, and emergency management systems to respond to a major public health threat. Throughout this time, Virginia’s hospitals, public health and emergency management agencies, and other public and private sector stakeholders have effectively navigated this unprecedented crisis while facing many pandemic-related challenges.

Positive affirmation of this can be found in the recently released 2021 National Health Security Preparedness Index [1] (NHSPI) that again lists Virginia as one of the states best prepared to respond to public health emergencies. Virginia is tied for first among states in the latest version of the annual index compiled by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the University of Colorado School of Public Health, and the University of Kentucky Center for Business and Economic Research.

Virginia is one of four states that earned a score of 7.4 on a 10-point scale, representing the top mark among states alongside Maryland, Massachusetts, and Nebraska. The national average is 6.8. Last year, Virginia also ranked as one of the top states in the NHSPI report [2]. Virginia has also been listed among the highest performing states in the Trust for America’s Health Ready or Not: Protecting the Public’s Health from Diseases, Disasters, and Bioterrorism annual report in each of the past two years [3].

A full news release is attached to this message and can be read online here [4].