Wednesday, April 2, 2025
4/2/2025
Texas DSHS Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) Cooperative Agreement - The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) is the lead state agency for Emergency Support Function 8, Public Health and Medical. DSHS receives funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) program for state, regional, and local preparedness. In Texas, DSHS is responsible for statewide and regional preparedness. At the same time, local readiness is maintained by local health entities (LHEs) and in areas where there is no local health authority, the DSHS Public Health Regions. DSHS structured its five-year PHEP work plan around the CDC's Logic Model and Response Readiness Framework and Strategies, the 15 Preparedness Capabilities, and the Ten (10) Essential Priorities. DSHS identified gaps in planning by reviewing the state capabilities assessment, jurisdictional risk assessment, hazard and vulnerability assessment, and after-action reviews from previous exercises and real-world events. Over the next five years, DSHS will: Strategy 1: Maintain and enhance all-hazards planning to improve preparedness, response, and recovery capacity for existing and emerging public health threats and modernize laboratory and electronic data systems. DSHS will apply a risk-based approach to all-hazards planning, using lessons learned from previous responses and following the preparedness planning, training, and exercise cycle. DSHS will address gaps in the medical countermeasure (MCM) distribution and dispensing and medical materiel management identified during the COVID-19 response and expand public health laboratory capacity and capability. Working with other CDC-funded programs (Epidemiology, Laboratory Capacity Data Modernization Cooperative Agreement, and the Public Health Infrastructure Grant), DSHS will focus on modernizing electronic data collection systems to improve asset tracking, situational awareness, and information sharing with all public health and medical partners. Strategy 2: Improve whole community readiness and response by enhancing partnerships established during the COVID-19 response and improving timely situational awareness and risk communications. DSHS will strengthen coordination with federal and non-governmental organizations to support state, regional, and local preparedness. DSHS will strengthen risk communications processes to improve proficiency in disseminating critical public health information and warnings and address misinformation and disinformation. By building core response capacity, DSHS will be able to support the reconstitution of public health at the state, regional, and local levels and address the needs of populations disproportionately affected by disasters. Strategy 3: Enhance administrative and budget preparedness, build workforce capacity, and maintain agency support of local health entities using the CDC's national preparedness capabilities, as applicable. Based on lessons learned from COVID-19 and other responses, DSHS will improve administrative preparedness processes to ensure timely access to resources during a response. DSHS will exercise administrative preparedness during the five-year project period to test emergency procurement and sub-recipient contracting processes. DSHS will build on the successes of the Public Health Workforce Cooperative Agreement to support staff recruitment, retention, and resilience, enhance public health workforce capacity, and promote awareness around mental health issues. DSHS will support the 45 PHEP participating local health entities to strengthen workforce recruitment, improve jurisdictional readiness, and effectively manage public health emergencies. In sum, DSHS will use the CDC's Logic Model and Response Readiness Framework, the 15 Preparedness Capabilities, and the Ten (10) Essential Priorities as a guide to implement cross-cutting program priorities to ensure DSHS meets all PHEP requirements and achieves its preparedness goals.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).