Domestic Preparedness

This is an article by Terrence Walker, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, July 8, 2026. One industrial incident can trigger far-reaching consequences and disrupt multiple systems. Coordinated planning and training can uncover gaps and improve response efforts for interconnected systems. Learn how organizations that plan and train across sectors are better prepared to manage disruption...

This is an article by Daryl Schaffer, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, July 8, 2026. From senior leaders allocating scarce resources to responders making split-second triage calls, lives often depend on judgments shaped by experience and circumstance. Behind every rescue are difficult decisions about who can be saved, what risks are acceptable, and how limited resources should be us...

In this episode of Domestic Preparedness: The Podcast , host Nicolette Phillips and editor-in-chief Catherine Feinman speak with Haley Elkins, a public health professional specializing in biosecurity, disaster planning, and behavioral health. The conversation explores how partnerships between public health and critical infrastructure are evolving to support more coordinated and effective emergency...

This is an article by Jeff Semancik, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, July 1, 2026. Advanced reactors promise safer nuclear power with smaller emergency planning zones and fewer expected off-site impacts. But emergency planners and responders must still be prepared to handle new hazards introduced by advanced reactor designs. Learn how planners who engage communities early and plan...

This is an article by William “Bill” Loucks, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, July 1, 2026. Fentanyl deaths have been declining, but far more potent substances, including nitazenes and novel psychoactive substances, are expanding in the illicit drug supply, raising overdose and accidental-exposure risks. Since these emerging drugs are harder to identify and more difficult to reverse...

In this episode of Domestic Preparedness: The Podcast , host Nicolette Phillips and editor-in-chief Catherine Feinman speak with Dr. Lisa Koonin, a leading public health preparedness expert with decades of experience at the CDC. From pandemic preparedness to future “Disease X” scenarios, the conversation explores the growing importance of collaboration between public health agencies, emergency man...

This is an article by Joshua Dise, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, June 24, 2026. A single screwworm case is a real-world test of whether the animal health response architecture can recognize a threat early enough to stop it from spreading. Learn how rapid reporting and coordinated response can be the difference between a localized incident and a broader agricultural security crisi...

This is an article by Bruce Clements, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, June 24, 2026. The 2014 Dallas Ebola case was a single infection that triggered a community-wide emergency, exposing weaknesses not in medicine, but in communication, healthcare readiness, and public trust. Many of those same challenges resurfaced during COVID-19 and other recent outbreaks. Learn how successful i...

In this episode of  Domestic Preparedness: The Podcast , host Nicolette Phillips sits down with National Weather Service Director Kenneth Graham to explore how the nation’s premier weather agency is transforming the way it supports emergency management and public safety. Drawing on decades of frontline forecasting experience, Graham shares how the Weather Service is shifting from simply issuing fo...

This is an article by Svetlana Smorodinsky, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, June 17, 2026 Embedding public health and disaster epidemiology professionals into planning, response, and recovery can strengthen decision-making and improve responder safety. It can break down silos between disciplines and expand capacity without adding staff, turning data into action. Learn how embedding...

This is an article by Raphael M. Barishansky, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, June 17, 2026. Federal programs like the Public Health Emergency Preparedness cooperative agreement and the Hospital Preparedness Program sustain the public health and healthcare systems that communities depend on during crises. Learn how shifts in responsibility from federal to state agencies could impac...

State and local public health workers, emergency managers, and partners in faith-based organizations are rooted in wanting to help people during disasters. In this episode of  Domestic Preparedness: The Podcast , host Nicolette Phillips and editor-in-chief Cathy Feinman sit down with Jack Herrmann, the senior director of Clinical Services for the National Headquarters of the American Red Cross, to...

This is an article by Cory Davis, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, June 10, 2026. As extreme weather risks intensify, public safety agencies, infrastructure, and communications systems are under growing strain. But rising complexity is being met with smarter solutions. Learn about a new era of emergency response that is taking shape, driven by artificial intelligence and resilient,...

This is an article by Justin Snair, Emma Erwin, and Sarah K. Miller, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, June 10, 2026. COVID-19 exposed major preparedness gaps, and AI has evolved as a resource. Yet procurement remains risky: organizations must navigate data security, compliance, workflow, and ethical concerns without a clear way to evaluate vendors. Learn how existing frameworks asse...

In this episode of  Domestic Preparedness: The Podcast , Lieutenant General Russell Honoré reflects on how U.S. emergency preparedness has evolved since Hurricane Katrina. While he notes significant progress in emergency response practices, he also describes the complexity of disaster response and recovery. The growing challenge of misinformation highlights how technology enables real-time communi...

This is an article by Judy Kruger, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, June 3, 2026. The airline industry has become an active part of the defense system against disease threats, actively investing in readiness to monitor emerging pathogens among passengers and linking them to new technology. Learn how additional real-world prevention strategies could reduce the chance that a new disea...

This is an article by Justin Templeton, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, June 3, 2026. Emotional injury may not take responders off the job, but it changes how they connect with family, friends, and each other. Left unaddressed, those effects shape organizational culture long before leaders recognize the damage. Even though trauma is unavoidable in an emergency, learn how readiness...

This is an article by Julia Beems, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, May 27, 2026. Despite life-or-death stakes during a power outage, too many people who rely on powered medical equipment still lack backup power, disaster plans, or the financial means to secure them, leaving communities more vulnerable during large-scale emergencies. Learn how expanding access to backup power protec...

This is an article by Daisy Cadet, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, May 20, 2026. Author Daisy Cadet uses her experience as a Deaf person with disabilities to demonstrate disparities in disaster communications and response. Emergency management systems must close persistent accessibility gaps for people with disabilities. Learn how intentional planning and design affects these popul...

This is an article by Judy Kruger, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, May 19, 2026. Accreditation signals that an organization meets recognized benchmarks and operates at a recognized level of quality and capability. Learn how it strengthens emergency management programs by setting clear standards that improve accountability and build resilience, while supporting grant eligibility, mu...

Stronger public-private partnerships and regional collaboration are important to community readiness. In this episode of  Domestic Preparedness: The Podcast , Nicolette Phillips of Domestic Preparedness talks with Tony Robinson from National Emergency Management and Response about how rising disasters and cyberthreats are reshaping national preparedness and how mentoring the next generation will b...

This is an article by John T. Briery, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, May 13, 2026. Effective emergency management increasingly relies on a “whole community” approach that integrates individuals with access and functional needs (AFN). Learn how implementing the C-MIST (Communication, Maintaining Health, Independence, Support and Safety, Transportation) framework, a function-based m...

This is an article by Shawna Sisler, Shannon Goodhue, and Jack Herrmann, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, May 13, 2026. Disasters disproportionately affect people with disabilities, older adults, individuals managing chronic conditions, and others with access and functional needs (AFN). Despite federal recognition of AFN through frameworks such as C-MIST, gaps persist in shelter des...

This is an article by Terrence Walker, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, May 6, 2026. Disaster response operations focus on logistics, personnel deployment, and infrastructure restoration. However, one persistent challenge continues to impact recovery outcomes: effective documentation. Learn how recovery operations can be delayed and how reimbursement processes slow for agencies and...

This is an article by Ron Cain, an Article Out Loud from Domestic Preparedness, May 6, 2026. Nerve agent attacks and pesticide poisonings are rare, but when they occur, emergency medical services (EMS) and hospitals may quickly exhaust their limited supplies of specialized antidotes. Learn how many communities can address this vulnerability with CHEMPACKs, pre-positioned containers of medications...