New Hampshire's Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) Program for FY 2024-2028 - New Hampshire (NH) is a rural state with an approximate population of 1,402,054 representing ten (10) counties, two hundred and twenty-one (221) towns, thirteen (13) designated cities, and twenty-five (25) unincorporated communities. The most populous cities include Manchester (115,543), Nashua (91,161) and Concord I (44,998). The median municipal population is 2,500 which demonstrates New Hampshire’s rurality. The NH public health system is a hybrid of a centralized and decentralized model within the NH Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Division of Public Health Services (DPHS) delivering essential public health programs. Some services, including Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) activities are accomplished in collaboration with local contracted community partners who operationalize the thirteen (13) Regional Public Health Networks (RPHNs). The RPHNs service the entire State through their unique geographic boundaries. The cities of Manchester and Nashua operate independent local health departments and work in collaboration with DPHS to support the work of the RPHNs within their regions. Finally, other public health services, such as maternal and child health, chronic disease, sexually transmitted diseases, and others are implemented through more than one hundred (100) contracted agencies. New Hampshire has established a single statewide health care coalition, operationalized through the Granite State Healthcare Coalition, which represents hospitals (31 hospitals including 5 specialty hospitals), emergency medical services (EMS), primary care providers (PCP), long term and skilled nursing care facilities, mental health services, and the home health and hospice agencies. The DPHS’s Bureau of Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Recovery (EPRR) serves as a bridge between local, state, and federal partners to assure public health emergency preparedness and response capabilities are achieved. Funding under this agreement will be used to build, improve, and sustain the fifteen (15) PHEP capabilities focusing on Community Preparedness, Incident Management, Public Health Surveillance and Epidemiological Investigation, Public Health Laboratory Testing, Medical Countermeasure Dispensing, Responder Safety and Health, Emergency Public Information and Warning/Information Sharing, and Medical Surge during Budget Period (BP) 1. Furthermore, funding will be used to support progress towards achieving CDC's Response Readiness Framework (RRF) and demonstrating related operational readiness and response activities. Additionally, New Hampshire prioritizes preparing for and responding to the public health needs of at-risk and other vulnerable populations - including individuals with access and functional needs. New Hampshire achieves this by updating plans and processes that address the unique needs of this population, exercising these plans, and involving advocates, subject matter experts, and other appropriate stakeholders during the planning, exercise, and continuous improvement processes. New Hampshire’s focus is to strengthen and enhance our public health systems’ capability to effectively prepare for and respond to any public health threat or emergency. This application outlines priorities that will enhance our readiness to mitigate risk and promote personal and organizational public health emergency preparedness and response activities. These important activities contribute to reducing morbidity and mortality - thereby lessening the impacts of any public health emergency.
